Deja Vu
by 3rd Echelon
Summary: The legendary Ezio Auditore could strike fear into the heart of any man...but that was only thanks to her. The pages of time had long forgotten her name, much less her importance to Ezio, but with help, Desmond would uncover the mysteries left in the past
1. Prologue

**I don't own anything from the Assassin's Creed franchise! All credits to Ubisoft.**

**Hi guys, real quick, I dont wanna talk too much before this. All I have to say is this, this isn't necessarily a fast paced story. In all honesty, this is going to be a very long story, with probably a lot of chapters because of how vast the AC world and story is. So...you have been forewarned. :)) It has a small bit of romance to it too. It's mainly of Ezio and Desmond but I've clearly added my own OCs to this story. I'm going to try to follow Assassin's Creed II, Brotherhood, and Revelations to a tee. Meaning, I'm trying to follow the story exactly as it played out in the games with a few minor adjustments because of my character. Also, I DO NOT WRITE SHORT CHAPTERS. That's also what I meant by slow paced. Before anyone says it, my OC is not a Mary Su, I promise. My friend had the idea for this story and asked me to write it, so therefore I am, since she isn't a writer and I am. Plus, I love AC anyways.  
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**I encourage all types of reviews, including heavy criticism. I'd also like to say that this an AMAZING GAME and I love it dearly. I even have a tattoo of the Assassin's sign. Anyways, please enjoy!**

Prologue

Desmond heard a noise behind him, and turned quickly. The high tech door to his room, which was always locked when he was in it, opened and Lucy walked through, looking rather serious as well as hard pressed for time. He immediately noticed that there were spattered bloodstains on her white, sleeveless shirt and couldn't help but give her a questioning look.

"We have to go," Lucy said in a hard tone before he could say anything to her.

"Lucy, where have you been?" Desmond began. "Why didn't-?"

"_Now!" _Lucy snapped, turning away from him. He was a little surprised with the tone of her reply but followed her to the Animus, where she stood behind the console, waiting.

He was incredibly confused as to why she looked so rushed and slightly anxious.

"Get in," she told him sternly.

Desmond glanced at her shirt again. "What's with the blood?" he asked, gesturing at it. "Are you okay?"

"Look," said Lucy, clearly irritated. "We have maybe ten minutes, _maybe, _before they've figured out what I've done. If we're not out of here and on the road by then-"

"Wait, we're leaving?" he cut in, surprised at the statement.

"Desmond," she said sharply. "I promise I'll answer all of your questions. _Later. _But right now, I need you to just shut up and do what I say. So please, get in the Animus."

He was, again, a little taken aback with her hard glare and almost abrasive tone.

"Alright," he conceited apologetically before laying down in the Animus.

Desmond heard Lucy working away quickly beside him for about thirty seconds before his mind's eye focused on something. It showed to files against the Animus "loading" interface. One file said Subject 16…and the other said Desmond Miles.

Before he understood what was happening, he could see a scene flash before him.

It was a woman screaming, while to other women sat around her bed, saying encouraging words in another language. Desmond realized quickly that the woman was in the middle of giving birth.

With one final scream, the baby was born. The midwife smiled. "It's a boy!"

The mother, breathing heavily looked elated, not noticing the worried gaze her servant cast at the midwife. The little baby wasn't screaming and therefore not breathing.

Before either of them could say anything to their mistress, the door opened to the room and a man walked in, looking a little frantic. Judging by his clothes, he looked to be of higher status and probably from a couple hundred years ago.

"My love," he said, going towards his wife. "Mi dispiace! I was at the bank when they told me. Did I miss it? Am I too late?"

The midwife, carrying the lifeless baby, stepped towards him.

"Give him here," said the man gently, not looking discouraged.

"Giovanni…" said the mother desperately, clearly worried about her newborn.

The man, Giovanni, took the baby into his hands and smiled. "It'll be alright," he assured his wife in a soft tone. He whispered a few words to the child in what sounded like Italian to Desmond…but he wasn't sure because Italian and Spanish were similar in some aspects.

The baby began to jerk, his little legs moving erratically before his arms would flail. A few tense, silent moments went by….

But the baby came to life after a few more jerks and began to cry. The room's mood lightened and the women looked the most relieved.

"He has a fine set of lungs!" laughed Giovanni, loving paternal eyes gazing at his son while holding him out for them to see.

"What shall we call him, my love?" asked his wife, beaming at Giovanni.

He didn't take a moment to think. "Ezio…" he said proudly. "Ezio Auditore da Firenze!"

Giovanni held the baby high as the little Ezio wailed.

And before he knew it, Desmond was yanked from the Animus.

"Get up," demanded Lucy. "Let's go."

Desmond swung his legs over the table, feeling nauseous, having been pulled from his ancestor's memories so quickly. "I'm gonna need a second," he said, rubbing his head to rid the feeling. Lucy was behind him, pulling out the memory core to the Animus and shoving it in her pocket.

"There isn't time, Desmond," she snapped again. "We have to leave."

Desmond didn't reply but stood up, the queasy feeling gone. He saw Lucy leaving the room. He broke into a jog to keep up with her. They were in a long hallway now, everything looking dull and dreary. All he could see was metal…and lights.

Immediately, he felt like he was being confined, despite the fact that he was escaping from this hellhole.

"We're really getting out of here, huh?" he said, jogging alongside her, coming up to the end of the hallway with Abstergo's logo on the wall . "Abstergo's got some fucked up interior decorators…"

Lucy didn't laugh, though he didn't think she would, regardless of his attempt to lighten the mood. She wouldn't have it though and she ran up to a locked door.

"Stay close," she hissed.

"Hey!" someone shouted. Desmond looked around and saw two guards behind an identical glass door looking at them. "You're not supposed to be up here!"

Lucy ignored them and quickly swiped her card before punching in a pass code.

"Open this door!" yelled one guard, trying to pry open the glass doors. Desmond vaguely wondered why he didn't just take his baton and bash the door down if he and the other guard were so hell bent on getting to them.

"I'm calling it in," said the other guard, who wasn't able to get the door open.

The opposite the glass door that Lucy was able to hack into, which was right at the end of the hallway, slid open for them to pass through. Lucy broke it a sprint and Desmond immediately followed after her.

"There's a breach in the research wing!" Desmond heard the guard say behind him. "I repeat, there's been a breach in a the research wing!"

They ran a little bit further and then made a left. Three seconds later, two guards rounded the corner a ways down the hall.

"There they are!" one called. "Don't let them get away!"

Desmond stopped, unsure of what to do, but Lucy ran straight for them. Both guards had batons and were about to attack her with them.

However, Lucy was able to quickly dispatch them. The first guard swung his baton and she took a hold of his arm and twisted it around him, causing him to yell in pain. The other guard tried to attack Lucy from behind but she dodged it, landing a few punches and a kick to him just before taking his baton and knocking him unconscious, spraying blood across the floor. The other guard stood up but Lucy quickly swung the stolen truncheon at his face. Desmond saw more blood spatter at the blow, and the guard lay on the floor, lifeless but still breathing. She dropped the baton and resumed her running.

Desmond had no idea that Lucy was capable of defending herself like that.

"Holy shit!" he cried, tailing her as she ran through a door that had opened for her.

It brought them into another hallway, one that showed a large atrium of some sort through the windows.

"Look at this place…" he said to himself, sort of amazed.

Lucy ran up to another door, to which Desmond realized was a door to the elevator. It slid open smoothly and they entered it. Lucy didn't say anything to him so he decided not to talk.

But as they started to go down, a thought occurred to Desmond. "What about the cameras?" he asked, looking at her.

She glanced at him and he saw her smirk, the first emotion other than irritation from her for the last five minutes. Desmond was just happy that she wasn't snapping at him like she had been.

"I rigged them to play old footage," she replied proudly. "How do you think I managed hide all your nighttime snooping of Abstergo?"

"You're good," Desmond admitted, highly impressed. She smiled wryly.

"So I've been told," she said, sounding almost indifferent. "But they're onto us now. We need to hurry."

The elevator came to the last floor and opened up for them. Again, the wall had Abstergo's glyph on the wall right as they exited. Lucy ran to the right and Desmond followed her closely. She stopped about nine feet down at the corner and peeked around it.

"Careful," she said quietly as he came up behind her. She scanned the room again before turning to look at him. "We need to get to that elevator on the other side of the room. Follow my lead…but keep an eye out for security. I'd rather avoid a fight."

Lucy broke into a run again, running down a hallway through what looked like glass cubicles or something similar. In the cubicles were machines and computers but nothing that really caught his eye. Desmond made sure to watch for any movement ahead as he tailed her. She abruptly made a right turn, a guard ahead of them but his back facing them.

Desmond saw in one of the glass cubicles what looked a lot like the Animus he had been strapped into for the last few weeks.

"Is that an Animus?" he said in a low voice, still running.

Lucy stopped at a break in the cubicles and Desmond nearly ran into her. "Wait," she hissed, peering around the corner. After another second, she continued on, taking a few turns and checking to make sure Desmond was following.

He saw another Animus as he passed and now he was getting confused again.

"How many of them are there?" he asked, more to himself.

She didn't answer him and stopped again. "Stay close."

Again, she snuck a glance down both corridors. Lucy took a left and ran down the hall when Desmond saw yet another Animus.

"What is the plural of Animus…?" he wondered aloud as he ran. "Animuses…? Animi? What do you think Lucy?"

She didn't reply. "Lucy?" he said louder. "What do they need with all of them?"

"Desmond," she growled. _"Shut up."_

Another couple of turns and they made it to the end of the hall where the elevator was. Lucy quickly swiped her card and punched in a few numbers. However, the red light didn't turn green for her and the elevator door refused to open.

"Fuck!" she hissed, turning to him. "I thought this card would work. It must be on a separate system…. I don't have the code."

Desmond gazed at the number pad for a second. "Wait…" he said slowly.

As he reached out, his vision turned blue…but four of the numbers were glowing red at him. He knew instinctively, it seemed, that those were the buttons he was supposed to push…but in what order?

He punched them in numerically, hoping that would work but it beeped at him.

"Shit," he said to himself, trying the numbers backwards numerically. It beeped again. "C'mon!"

Lucy glanced around to see if there were any guards coming their way or if they'd see them but so far, no one noticed her and Desmond, mainly because they weren't around.

He tried another number order after a moment of thought and it made a more pleasant noise. The light above the keypad turned green and the door opened. Lucy gazed at him, genuinely surprised.

"How did you do that?" she asked. Desmond glanced at her. He shook his head, just as confused at her.

"I…don't know," he admitted.

Lucy didn't look all that concerned with that answer and entered the elevator. She was just relieved that she didn't have to find another route to the garage.

"Let's go," she told him.

Once the door shut, she rolled her eyes. "There's always something," she sighed to herself.

Desmond, however, had another thought. Maybe elevators caused revelations, he didn't know….

"What was that in the Animus…?" he asked. "Subject 16? Ezio Ow dee…Ow dee something…?"

Lucy looked up at him. "I think we've been wrong all along," she said, a thoughtful expression on her face. "That's why we need to get out of here. Vidic and the Templars…they're only part of the problem."

"Whaddaya mean?" said Desmond, thoroughly confused.

She brushed him off as the elevator came to a stop. "I'll explain when we get there," she assured him.

"Get _where!"_ he cried, having just about enough of Lucy's cryptic talk.

The doors opened up for them, revealing the garage. Lucy automatically started running forward but within a few seconds, at least eight guards appeared from around pillars, ambushing them.

"Shit," groaned Desmond as four guards converged onto him.

These guards apparently were baton-less, which was fine by him, but they immediately threw punches at him. Once managed to get him in the chin, causing him to stumble. Desmond had never gotten into any fights as a young kid, at least not serious fist fights so he wasn't quite sure how he was going to fair, especially against four of them. Despite that past though, he was holding his own fairly well with four guards, having been able to dodge some punches as well as dish out and land a few of his own.

Desmond was able to best three of them and was working on the last before Lucy came to his rescue. She ran up from behind the guard and knocked him from the back of the head with a kick, rendering him unconscious.

"Thanks," he said, his lip slightly swollen. She didn't say anything and ran towards a black, inconspicuous car.

Desmond came up behind her as she opened up the trunk. "Get in," she ordered.

He eyed her incredulously. "You're joking…" he said, glancing at the trunk size. It looked like it would barely fit his six-foot, one hundred and seventy pound stature.

Lucy gave him a stern look. "It's for your protection."

"Ah, man…" he sighed, climbing into the trunk and going into a semi fetal position. Lucy then smiled slightly at him.

"We're almost there…" she said gently, before closing the trunk on him.

Everything was black…he couldn't see anything. Wherever he was going, he hoped he was going to get the answers he wanted.


	2. The Beginning

**I don't own anything from the Assassin's Creed franchise. All credits to Ubisoft.**

**Hi, not much to say only that please enjoy this chapter. They get into the Animus next chapter. Bear with me here (like I said, this isn't a fast paced story. But you'll hopefully enjoy it!)**

Chapter One: The Beginning

"Déjà…" quietly said a male's voice behind her. She decidedly ignored it, hoping that the voice's owner would leave her alone while she continued to meditate in a sitting position on the floor.

She should have known better though. "Déjàààààà," he hissed. She felt herself grow irritated, her eyebrows drawn together while her eyes were shut.

"Déjà!"

"_What!"_ she snapped, opening her eyes and turning in her spot on the ground to glare at the person aggravating her.

"Well, there is no need for that look," the familiar man said defensively with his British accent, while in a squatting stance. She could tell he was smirking just slightly though. "Was I bothering you?"

"You knew exactly what you were doing, Shaun," Déjà grumbled. "Ten minutes to be alone. That's all I asked. _Ten minutes…_and you can't even give me that."

She could see that he was amused; his light brown eyes were twinkling with its usual mischief behind his thinly rimmed, black glasses.

He shrugged. "I don't know why you're sitting in the dark and silence when there is so much work to be done," he jabbed with the slightest amount of playfulness.

Déjà did not let up on the glare so he rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright," he sighed. "I'm sorry I _intruded _on your alone time."

"Meditation," she corrected him, rising to a stand. "And now that you got me all riled up, I'm going to go practice martial arts instead…."

"To get out all that pent up aggression?" he replied, poking fun at her, also standing up from his position.

Déjà ignored him. "What do you want, Shaun…?"

"Testy, aren't we?" he said. "I just wanted to ask you about something."

Déjà growled at him before she turned away, seeing that he had invaded her and her roommate's bedroom. "Because it couldn't have waited?" she asked in an irritated tone, sipping water out of her cup on the dresser.

Shaun leaned against the wall. "Bothering you never waits," he said, trying not to smile. Déjà hated when he was in one of these moods. He liked to test her patience and try to provoke her into a fit of anger…but that was just Shaun being Shaun. She figured he wasn't paid enough attention to as a child.

"You've got ten seconds to tell me what you want, or I will seriously kick you in the balls," she snapped, giving him a warning look.

"That's not very nice, Déjà. No wonder why the kids never played with you when you were little…it's because you threaten to beat them if they were the slightest bit mean to you," he teased. Déjà took a step towards him and he backed away from her automatically. "Look, all I was going to say is that I know you have a problem with Lucy and vice versa. You can't hide it."

He had spoken rather quickly to ensure that her foot would not grievously injure him.

"That's not a question…"

He made a noise of annoyance as she walked away. "Fine," he said loftily. "Why do you and Lucy have such a hard time remaining civil? Or rather, why do you two hate each other so much?"

"I don't _hate _her, Shaun," she snapped defensively, her deep blue eyes darkening in irritation. "That's a large assumption."

"Right," he replied skeptically.

The exited her room and out into the large storage area with a high ceiling and metal boxes piled high. This was their hideout, a large and previously abandoned warehouse in Italy that she, Shaun, and their other partner, Rebecca, used for their research, as well as to veil themselves from the sight of Templars and the company they ran, Abstergo. However, Déjà knew it was only a matter of time before the Templars was able to locate them, seeing that they are better funded and better equipped than the Assassin Order that Déjà had been born into.

They were now bringing in two more people: Lucy, a long time friend of Rebecca, who she hasn't seen in seven years, and someone that Déjà had never met but heard much of, Desmond Miles. Lucy had been in an internship at Abstergo as an genetic researcher for the last seven years, or at least that was as far as Déjà knew. However, during that time, she reported a lot of information back to the Order, revealing much about Abstergo. Now, the Order had assigned her to a recently assembled team, run by Déjà with Shaun and Rebecca to further delve into Desmond's ancestor's memories. Lucy had come to the warehouse hideout last week and left just this morning to rescue Desmond from Abstergo.

From what little Déjà researched of Lucy, it seems as though she was very well qualified in the field of neuroscience and also what is considered pseudoscience. Déjà also found out that for the first three years in Abstergo, Lucy was largely responsible for the design for a number of the Animus' functions and interfaces for the company. Apparently by an order that Déjà didn't know who from, Lucy was supposed to be killed so she could not speak of the Animus, but Dr. Warren Vidic, head of the Animus project, intervened, keeping her alive.

But now Lucy is supposedly breaking Desmond Miles out of Abstergo and both are coming here, for that's apparently is the command of the Grand Master of the Assassin Order. Déjà wouldn't argue, but Lucy has only been with her, Shaun, and Rebecca for a about a week, and already her and Lucy have been at odds several times. Rebecca, Déjà, and Lucy were all sharing a room but Déjà decided that she would just let Rebecca and Lucy take it while she would move her stuff out into the vast storage room on the walkways above.

Shaun took a seat on a one of the many metal storage boxes while Déjà started practicing some extensive martial arts moves.

"Look," she said, in the middle of one her forms and dropping her voice, "like I said, I don't hate Lucy. I just have a hard time working with her."

"Why?" Shaun pressed, crossing his arms with an expectant expression.

She exhaled through her nose before answering. "She's inflexible," said Déjà flatly.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Inflexible…"

"Yes, inflexible," she snapped again, struggling to keep her voice quiet. Because Lucy was a friend of Rebecca, Déjà didn't want Rebecca to hear them. Déjà finished her form and moved onto the next one before speaking again. "Lucy likes to run everything her own way. She thinks she's entitled to boss us around or something, I don't know…. You saw her yesterday! She gave you more work than the rest of us and she thinks that because she has more knowledge of Abstergo and their technology that she is, therefore, in charge. Although, technically, it is well known that this is _my _team and therefore, she is under _my_ jurisdiction, which is rightfully justified because of my title as a Master Assassin and she holds no such title."

Déjà breathed in heavily, trying to remain calm but talking about this was beginning to make her a little angry, defensible or not. Because of her bubbling irritation, she was starting to throw powerful punches and complicated kicks as if someone actually in front of her to take the blow.

"But you don't necessarily command us as you will," said Shaun. Which was true. Though Déjà had a generally "alpha dog" type personality, she didn't order him or Rebecca but worked with them as equals because she figured it would bring about a better relationship between them…though Shaun and Rebecca were always bickering with each other multiple and pointless things.

"Exactly!" said Déjà, exasperated, sparring an imaginary opponent. "That aside, she's a fricken box about everything. Everything has to run in sequence, a certain way, A to B, one to three. It can't deviate from that, otherwise, she goes off and into a damn rampage. It's shit like that that pisses me off, Shaun. Not everyone is a Type A person. Not everyone is so anal-retentive where everything needs to be a certain way."

Déjà stopped, keeping her breathing even. She wasn't winded but she was growing a little hot. Shaun couldn't help but be somewhat amused with her reaction because it was clear she was taking out her aggression on air.

"And another thing!" she said abruptly, turning to Shaun again. "She lacks the most basic skill of an assassin."

"And what's that?" said Shaun, thoroughly enjoying that Déjà was getting irritated.

"Improvisation!" she said heatedly, resuming her sparring. "She's done well enough as an assassin thus far, but honestly, because she is so fricken linear in thought, if a mission doesn't go _exactly_ as planned, as rare as it is for her, she panics. Lucy doesn't know how to think on her toes as well as she should….

"That's part of being an assassin. It's the ability to find other options in a matter of seconds and she doesn't have an intuitive sense to her. Like today, I have a feeling something didn't go according to plan and she's having a hard time improvising."

Déjà paused. "Look, Lucy is a great asset to the Order, I'm not saying otherwise. I just think she's rough around the edges."

Shaun finally unfolded his arms.

"Not everyone was born into the Order, Déjà," said Shaun. "We haven't exactly had a lifetime to learn the ways of an assassin."

She sighed, knowing that he wasn't necessarily sticking up for Lucy on her behalf but merely was showing a perspective for Déjà to see, even though she didn't feel like seeing it.

Déjà had been born into the Assassin Order. From birth, she was destined to become Master Assassin, and hopefully the Grand Master, especially because she had come from a line of assassins, dating back to time of the Crusades. Because of that knowledge and status, the Swann family was held in high esteem in the Order. Since she was a few years old, both her parents had taught her the Creed as well as train her to be an assassin. By the age of twenty, through various missions, she had received the title of Master Assassin.

A week later after receiving the title, the Templars killed her parents.

Because of their deaths, Déjà has made it her life's mission to avenge their deaths as well as find the Apple of Eden, a quest her parents had been on for decades. Two years later, she hasn't had much to account for. She had no names on who precisely murdered her parents and no sign of the Apple of Eden.

She hoped this Desmond Miles would reveal some answers.

"I'm not idiot, Déjà…" Shaun's voice cut in through her thoughts. Déjà slowly stopped kicking and looked at him.

"That's debatable," she teased darkly.

He snorted before adjusting his glasses. "There's something else about her you don't like," he said, ignoring her banter. "Something you've left out specifically, which you know you can trust me."

She knew she could, despite how annoying and sarcastic Shaun could be. Ever since he and Rebecca joined into a team with her about a year ago, Déjà and Shaun have had a relatively good relationship. His biting cynicism and dry humor appealed to her, not romantically, of course, but it made for a good friendship. In time, she grew to trust him and though no one would ever catch her openly admitting it…Shaun was basically her best friend.

Déjà averted her gaze from his.

"I don't trust her…" she said quietly.

He snorted. "Well, that's obvious," said Shaun, rolling his eyes.

"No," she replied, looking at him with a hard expression. "I mean, I don't think…" she sighed, trying to formulate her thoughts to words. "I don't think I'll _ever _trust her, Shaun. Lucy could save my life and I wouldn't trust her."

Shaun looked at her pensively. "I don't understand," he said finally. "Do you have any sort of basis for that feeling?"

She shook her head. "No…" she admitted, falling silent for a moment or so. "Okay, I'm not saying that this is what is…but I don't know…."

Déjà didn't know how to say it without feeling a little guilty. "I just…" she stopped again. She was struggling with what she wanted to say and Shaun could see that.

"Just spit it out," he said impatiently.

She shifted her gaze uncomfortably before dropping her voice into a whisper. "What if she's a Templar? That's what I mean by 'I don't trust her'…"

Shaun was clearly in shock with her accusation. "You think Lucy is a Tem-?"

"No!" cut in Déjà quickly. "I'm not saying she is, Shaun. I'm just saying…_what if?"_

"You can apply that question to anyone, Déjà!" he said, throwing up his hands. "What if Rebecca's a Templar? What if _I'm _a Templar?"

Déjà gave him an "I'm not amused" glare. "Well obviously you two aren't. I can't possibly see you both working for the Templars…" she explained with a harsh tone. "All I'm saying is that I wouldn't put it past Lucy to betray us. She betrayed them, technically…so who is to say she isn't capable of pulling that shit again but on us."

"Point taken," conceded Shaun. "By the way, did Lucy ever say when she would be arriving back with this Desmond Miles character?"

"One-ish is what she told Rebecca yesterday."

Shaun pulled back his sleeve slightly of his tan sweater vest to reveal his watch. "Well, it's 12:30. She should be here soon."

Déjà exhaled heavily. The conversation really put her in a foul mood. "I'm going to take a quick shower then," she said, turning to the bedroom wing again.

Shaun nodded and stood up. "I'm going to go check on Rebecca," he said. "I think she's setting up the Animuses…or is it Animi? Anime? No, that's that Japanese cartoon crap."

She had to laugh at his random babbling as he walked up towards the metal ramp leading to the research room. "Shut up, Shaun," she said chuckled. "You sound retarded."

"Well, it's a serious question!" he exclaimed. "What the hell is the plural form of Animus anyway?"

Déjà ignored him.

As hard as it was for her to admit, even to herself, she was a little nervous about going into the Animus. She hadn't done it before, not that the opportunity had presented itself until now. Déjà knew she came from a long line of assassins, ones that had dealt with the Apple of Eden and she hoped she could find the one of them must have the answer to where the Apple was hidden.

But that was a lot of different people's memories she would have to search through, even with Desmond Miles' help.

At least with the two of them though, there was a high chance that one of them will run into the answer.

Déjà had talked to Rebecca, seeing that Lucy didn't tell Déjà shit, and it sounds like Lucy had a lead on where the elusive Apple of Eden was hiding.

According to Lucy, at her time in Abstergo, one of the subjects of the Animus project, had become obsessed with an specific assassin during the Renaissance period in Italy. Rebecca kept referring to the subject as Subject 16, saying that Lucy refused to give a name, especially since he ended up dying because he had been locked away in the Animus for too long…sometimes days a time. Rebecca said that Subject 16 had literally gone insane because of it.

That was also why Déjà was nervous to work with the Animus…but she trusted Rebecca and her revamped Animus, which was called the Animus 2.0, or affectionately nicknamed "Baby."

Anyways, Subject 16 always would come back and reference an assassin in the Renaissance period. So, when Desmond arrived at the warehouse, following the assassin from that time period was their first lead they would act on.

Déjà wasn't sure who she would end up following in the Animus but she wondered vaguely if she would end up retracing the same memories as Desmond would, seeing that it was highly possible for them to share ancestors, especially since both were born into the Order.

She had finally reached her room. She grabbed clothes and hurried to the shower.

Déjà had heard a lot about Desmond Miles; he better damn well live up to his reputation or she will be pissed.

* * *

><p>Déjà drummed her fingers impatiently on the metal desk she was sitting behind, glancing at the clock at fifteen-minute intervals. Lucy said she would be back at the warehouse by one o'clock.<p>

It was almost four thirty.

Shaun and Rebecca found ways to keep themselves occupied. Shaun was busy researching away, as usual, about the Italian Renaissance. He didn't precisely know who or what he was going to be looking for but he thought he should read up on it. Rebecca was always continuously tweaking with the Animus. When she was satisfied with one, she would replicate it with the second Animus.

Right now, she was listening to music in her headphones and working at her computer on the Animus interface.

Because of this, they weren't so concerned about Lucy's tardiness. Déjà wasn't heavily worried but there was a possibility that they were captured…which would set back a lot.

_I knew this would happen…_she thought, shaking her head to herself. _I even told Shaun it would…._

"Yes, please keep drumming away over there, Déjà," said Shaun irritably, turning from his corner of the research room. "It's a lovely sound, really. It helps me concentrate."

Déjà glared at him, but more so playfully than out of anger, and stopped drumming her fingers. Shaun shook his head at her as he returned to his computer.

"If you're so bored waiting, why don't you come here and read this? It'll give you background on Desmond Miles," he said as he turned back to his computer. He picked up a small stack of paper and waved at her.

She stood up with a heavy sigh and walked over to Shaun, vaguely wondering why he didn't just input Desmond Miles' file into the database instead of printing it. Déjà snatched the papers from his hand and leaned against the long wooden desk. It was only about a three-page report…so there must not be a lot of information about him.

The front page was the most basic information on Desmond Miles. His birthday, his height and weight, his occupation, hair and eye color, his blood type, birthplace…random facts about him. It also included a picture of him, one he took for his license for his motorcycle.

Déjà gazed at the picture for a moment. He wasn't a bad looking guy. He had black hair, cut very short, almost buzzed and what looked like hazel eyes…no, they were fairly light, almost like a really light green. He had a relatively good-looking facial structure, though his brow bone was a little dominant, slightly overshadowing his pretty eyes. There was a little bit of a five o'clock shadow on him and Déjà could see a long, thin scar running vertically across the right hand side of his face at his lips.

"Did you get distracted with the picture…?" jabbed Shaun from beside her while he scrolled through notable painters during the Renaissance.

Déjà fiercely smacked him upside the head with the stack of papers. At contact, he cringed, though it didn't hurt.

"You're so violent!" he exclaimed, his voice riding on the edge of a whining child. "Why do you always have to resort to hitting me as a way to rid your frustration?"

"Because you're an idiot," she replied immediately, punching him in the arm.

He made a noise of pain and shot her a glare, rubbing his arm tenderly. "Will you go sit somewhere else?" he snapped. "You're distracting me."

Rebecca let out a small laugh across the room, probably just amused with the fact that Shaun was getting beaten on.

Déjà rolled her eyes and stood up. She walked out of the research room, down the hall, and out into the storage hangar with Desmond Mile's file in hand. Bored, she decided to find a secluded corner to sit in.

She put the papers in her mouth and leapt up to a beam just above her. Déjà quickly pulled herself up, with little effort. She adjusted her footing so she could jump onto some heavy metal storage containers that were piled high towards the ceiling. Once she was safely on the boxes, she vaulted herself up to the left towards the metal walkway overhead. She easily grasped the edge and climbed over the safety bars, the floor being at least thirty feet below her now.

Once on solid ground again, she walked to the nearest corner and sat down with her legs out.

Shaun would have called her lazy for not taking the ladder…and she would have come back with a reply that would have been, "It's efficient…not lazy. Why take the long way when I can take the short way?"

His reply would be a short, snippy, "It's clearly more effort."

Déjà chuckled to herself and looked down at the file.

She reread the first page again. Desmond was A positive for blood type, it was put down as hazel eyes, though Déjà thought that was debatable, and black hair. It didn't say his complete birthday, only that he was born in 1987, which Déjà deduced that he was about twenty-five years old then. She wondered why that it didn't have his complete birthday when he had to have it on his license for his motorcycle. He was six feet tall and 170 pounds and he used to be a bartender.

According to the rest his file, Desmond use to live in an assassin compound as a child, known only as The Farm. Déjà had heard of the compound a few times in passing but knew not of where it was located because it was because it was an off-the-grid hideout for the Assassins there. The only information she knew about The Farm was that it only held about thirty people in it and its inhabitants weren't aloud to leave it, or at least the children weren't.

At sixteen, Desmond fled from the compound and went into hiding for the next nine years. Déjà was a little impressed with how long he was able to remain undetected by the Templars or the Assassins for that long. It said he only ever paid in cash to avoid tracing him through bank accounts. Shaun's report also revealed that Desmond never used his real name for anything.

The only reason the Templars caught him was because he was trying to get his license for his motorcycle and they used his fingerprint to trace him.

"He should've known better…" she said to herself while rolling her eyes. That seemed like basic knowledge to her.

She wondered why he fled The Farm. Clearly, he didn't want to become an assassin like he was supposed to, since he avoided it for so long. Déjà didn't quite understand that, seeing that becoming an assassin was all she ever wanted to do for as long as she could remember.

Maybe she would ask him about it.

Déjà glanced at his picture again for a second before standing up to go back downstairs. She leapt lithely off the scaffolding and onto the beam she had used to get up to the walkway in the first place, balancing easily on her toes.

She jumped back down to the ramp leading to the hallway towards the research room.

"That was a lovely read, Shaun," she said as she walked back into the room. "Too bad it only kept me busy for all of fifteen minutes."

"Indeed," he replied, uninterested. Déjà tossed the papers back onto the desk and wandered around the room.

Her meandering brought her back to where she had been originally. Déjà sat down behind the computer at the desk in the corner of the room. Idly, she opened up a game of Solitaire.

She hated being stuck like this.

Normally, she would be out in the field, on assignments for the Order. This is the first time in a several years where she was tied down to a team. Not that Déjà minded, but it was rather irritating to be confined and basically suffocated. That aside, she felt a little useless.

Being a Master Assassin in the modern times didn't just mean that you were great in parkour or being able to stealthily and yet publicly kill someone. Now, assassins had to master the art of technology.

And Déjà had, to some extent. She was exceptionally good at hacking…that somehow came natural to her. She could recode, unsecure files in seconds, and rewrite the entire script quickly enough….

As bright as Déjà was, she wasn't a prodigy like say, Rebecca, who was basically a genius when it came to building her own Animus…. So there was no way that Déjà could help out because she'd only get in Rebecca's way.

Déjà had _no_ desire to help Shaun build his knowledge archives. That was just too tedious and well, boring. Plus, why would she want to help him out when he causes her hell everyday?

"Lucy!" said Rebecca's voice some twenty minutes later, breaking the silence between them. "You made it!"

Déjà immediately exited her eighth game of Solitaire and stood up.

"Sorry it took so long," Lucy said apologetically.

Shaun also approached her, hands in his pockets. "Welcome back," he said, slightly on the cordial side. There was something about Lucy that put her above Shaun's snide remarks. Déjà noticed that a while back, though it only showed to her that Lucy and Shaun had no close bond, seeing that teasing was his form of friendly affection.

Déjà was not all that interested in pleasantries when she walked up to them.

"Where's Desmond?" she asked, staring directly into Lucy's blue eyes. Déjà noticed a few blood spatters on Lucy's shirt but she paid no mind to them.

"I sent him to rest," she replied.

Déjà was confused. "To rest?"

Lucy shifted, slightly uncomfortable. "He isn't feeling well. He's in your room, Shaun."

"My room!" gasped Shaun, not particularly happy about sharing a room with someone else. "There's a damn bed in here we have for him, why is he in _my _bed?"

Everyone ignored him

"I see…" said Déjà, not wanting to press the issue. Besides, she had another question nagging at her brain. "Why are you so late?"

"Yeah, did you get caught or something?" said Rebecca, clearly interested in the story.

Lucy walked towards the desk that Déjà had been sitting at to put down her jacket.

"No, we didn't. We escaped with no problems…" she said, not meeting Déjà's eyes. The group waited for her to continue…so after an awkward moment, she did. "I was worried they were going to follow us once we got out of Abstergo, in case one of the guys we…beat up saw us drive away. I only assumed they were unconscious.

"In any case, I drove around for three hours, hoping to get them confused and they'd lose my trail, if they were," she explained. "I don't think we were followed but I did it just in case. So, that's why Desmond is resting, because he was in the trunk for three and half hours."

Déjà gaped at her.

"You've got to be kidding me, Lucy!" she said, an underlying tone of heavy anger in her voice. Lucy caught it and shot her the slightest death glare.

"What?" she snapped.

"You _left _Desmond in your trunk for nearly four hours!" Déjà exclaimed, completely dumbfounded with her idiocy. "He could've died!"

Lucy looked like she already knew this but was avoiding the guilt of it. "Well, obviously he's fine."

Rebecca and Shaun exchanged glances, carefully backing away a few feet from the pair that was about to get into another argument.

"Yeah, _clearly," _said Déjà cynically. "Hence him feeling sick…"

Lucy folded her arms, trying to remain calm. "I don't understand what your worked up about, Déjà?" she said icily. "Desmond's here and alive."

Déjà sort of laughed darkly, sensing the blow up coming. "Let's just think this through for a second," she replied with her own cold voice. "Desmond was in your trunk for four hours. He could have suffocated, which is why he is feeling sick right now because he was losing oxygen in there. Not only that, it's not _safe _in the trunk!

"Let's just say that the Templars or whoever knew Desmond was in the back of your car. They could've rear-ended you, seriously injuring or killing Desmond all together, dealing us a huge loss. Did you think of that, Lucy? He had a high risk of _dying!"_

The realization dawned in Lucy's eyes but Déjà could see that she wasn't about to concede.

"All I heard were a bunch of scenarios that didn't happen. Desmond is here, that's all that matters," said Lucy firmly. "I did what I had to be done in order to keep the hideout hidden for as long as it can be. How it was executed is irrelevant!"

Déjà seethed, making sure her hands didn't go flying.

"Nothing is irrelevant!" she snapped. "Risking the life of another assassin unnecessarily is ridiculous. You could have thought it through a little better. The 'what if' scenarios should have been at the forefront of your mind. You should already know that and I will make sure to remind you when it's needed. As I said, you could've gotten him killed and that would have been a huge cost the Order. A lot is riding on this guy, Lucy, mainly because of what you've been reporting about him.

"And this isn't the Lucy Stillman show, alright? I've let it slide for the last week but I'm tired of letting you think that you're superior to me. I don't care what you know about Abstergo. I swear on my life, I will get you kicked off this team in seconds if you undermine me or our whole operation. Do _not _force my hand."

It fell silent, both women standing at the same height, glaring at one another. Shaun had found it all highly amusing while Rebecca was more so indifferent.

"If you two are finished behaving like little children," said Shaun, hiding his smirk, "we have work to do."

Déjà and Lucy glared at each other for another moment before Lucy finally broke away. She turned to Rebecca and pulled something out of her pocket.

"Here, I got something for you," said Lucy in a gentler tone.

"Whoa!" said Rebecca. "The memory core!"

"A parting gift from Abstergo," replied Lucy with a smile.

"With their data, things are gonna go much faster!" Rebecca exclaimed. "I'll get to work on merging the code."

Lucy nodded before sitting down at the computer. With a final glance, Déjà turned on her heel to leave the room. Since Desmond wasn't going to be working with them tonight, she had no reason to stay in the room…with Lucy.

What could she say…? Déjà had a temper.

That aside, Déjà was genuinely concerned about Desmond's health. A lot of weight was on this guy's shoulders…and he didn't even know it yet.

It was definitely a good time to move her stuff out of the bedroom and into the storage room. As she walked to her bedroom, she had a feeling she'd get a jesting e-mail from Shaun.

She rolled her eyes.


	3. Meet and Greet

**I don't own anything of the Assassin's Creed franchise. All credits to Ubisoft and wherever else they should be given.**

**Hi, sorry, this chapter is a little long. But hopefully you guys will enjoy it. Sorry if I have any grammatical errors or spelling mistakes but sometimes, even after rereading and editing each chapter, I still miss some things. Thank you for the reviews guys. Also, yes, I was never fond of Lucy. haha**

**I encourage all types of reviews and I also love questions if you guys are confused. I'll be happy to answer anything. Thank you so much. I'm really looking forward to continuing this story for some time.**

Chapter Two: Meet and Greet

Desmond woke up with a start, after having a strange dream of reliving part of Altaïr's memories. The second he woke up though, he didn't remember just _which _memory it was. Feeling groggy, he sat up and swung his legs over the bed.

Yesterday, after being forced into the trunk for so long, he felt light-headed and sick to his stomach. He accounted that for the lack of oxygen in such a small place and bouncing around all over the place.

Lucy had brought him to this bedroom and he passed out without much thought. Now that he was awake, he looked around at the walls.

One wall, the one with the door to the room, had a large world map on it. There were a lot of scribbles on it with arrows, x marks, and circles. There was a small bits of text too but Desmond was too lazy to stand up and look at it.

The rest of the white walls were covered in pictures of various things. One side, the one Desmond was facing, were pictures of different places across the planet. Some were here in Italy, like the Coliseum and the Vatican. Others were of Big Ben, Easter Island, deserts, and churches in various cities.

The opposite wall had printed portraits of people, some painted and some photos. From what Desmond could see, none were celebrities but notable people from history. There was one of Jesus Christ, another of Henry Ford, the Wright Brothers, Theodore Roosevelt, Benjamin Franklin…and many other people.

_Someone's a history nut…_he mused as he stood up.

Desmond's stomach growled loudly. He hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast yesterday.

He glanced at the clock in the room. It was early, only seven in the morning. He wondered if Lucy or anyone else would be up.

After mulling it over, he left the room, wondering if there was a bathroom anywhere too. He found it after walking down the hall a bit, because it had a men's sign on it and the door next to it said women's.

The bathroom surprisingly had a shower in it. He was a little confused as to why the warehouse had a full bathroom in it but he didn't dwell too long on it.

Once he was finished, he washed his hands and exited the bathroom. He followed the hall some more, passing by another closed door. He finally came to the storage area, the room where the ceiling was at least fifty feet high. Desmond wondered what it use to store back when it was actually a warehouse.

Immediately, his attention was captured by a young woman, who was free running throughout the room, wearing a black racerback tank top and some black jeans. She was easily scaling beams, leaping from the rafters, climbing the boxes, as well as running along the safety bars.

She completely reminded Desmond of Altaïr, but better because her movements were more fluid and quick.

From what he could discern from his distance, she had medium-length, sleek, dark hair, most likely black, which was tied up into a high ponytail and lightly browned skin. This girl had an athletic build, so she was generally thin but with toned thigh and arm muscles.

He was highly impressed as he watched her, so much so that it rooted him to the spot. Desmond just couldn't stop watching.

The girl leapt off one of the boxes, twisting sinuously through the air before landing on the ground, her hand on the floor while in a squatting position. Her back was facing him as she stood to a stand.

She was closer now so Desmond could see a tattoo on her left shoulder blade. It was black, probably about the size of his palm, and he thought it was that symbol used by the Assassin Order.

So, she was an assassin.

"Desmond Miles…" she said, sounding amused. The woman turned to him, smiling almost brightly at him. "Feeling better?"

He blinked. "Uh," he said lamely. "Yeah, I am. Thanks."

She was pretty, he had to admit. This girl had probably the bluest eyes he had ever encountered behind long eyelashes. She had full, red-pink lips, a clear complexion, and finely shaped eyebrows. She was glistening just slightly from a bit of sweat but otherwise, she seemed like she hadn't been exercising at all.

"You sort of skipped out on dinner last night," she said, sounding friendly. "You're probably hungry, right?"

"Well, yeah-" he began but his stomach cut him off with an obnoxious growl. The woman laughed good-naturedly.

"I think that was a good enough answer," she replied. "This way."

The girl led him up a long ramp that led into a hallway. There was the option at the end of it to take a right or left. She took a left, which led to a larger hallway, one with three tall windows overlooking a street outside. Desmond had glanced to the right, seeing a what looked like a lounge chair in red but that's all he saw.

"So, I didn't catch your name," said Desmond finally, once they were in an open room that was the kitchen and a dining area.

"Oh!" she said in shock, turning around to face him. "I'm sorry. I'm Déjà. Kinda like Déjà vu…but instead, my last name is Swann."

She held out a slender hand for him and he shook it. "Well, you obviously already knew who I am," he replied. Déjà smiled and then turned to the kitchen again. She set about, getting pots and pans out, as well as pulling out various food items from the fridge.

Déjà began to crack eggs as Desmond stood behind the island counter, looking uneasy. She chuckled. "Seriously, you're making me feel uncomfortable when you stand there like that. Take a seat or something," she said, with a easy going roll of her eyes.

He laughed, but she could tell it was slightly out of nervousness.

"Do you want any help?" he asked awkwardly. "I mean, I'd feel bad if you're cooking for me and I didn't help."

She shrugged. "Only if you want to," Déjà replied. "The bacon does need to go into the pan though."

Desmond nodded and turned on the fire to the stove and took the package of bacon. "All of it?" he asked.

"Yes please, Shaun and Lucy will want some. Not Rebecca though, she's a vegetarian," Déjà answered, sounding distracted as she put pepper and salt in the eggs. He had no idea who Shaun and Rebecca were but he did as he was told.

It went silent, aside from the now sizzling bacon.

"I heard you're a bartender, Desmond," Déjà said suddenly, glancing up at him with a smile as she made the scrambled eggs next to him.

_"Was _a bartender," he corrected her jokingly. She sort of laughed. Well, at least she was easy to amuse.

"Right, my bad," she said, grinning. "Well, in any case, I'm thinking that you should make us all some drinks one day once all this shit is over."

Desmond chuckled. "Sounds good to me."

Déjà purposefully left that sentence open for him to question on, because she knew Desmond hadn't been talked to yet about why he was even here. Of course, Lucy could have talked to him about it for the four hours she was late, but no…she left him in the trunk.

She was still angry with Lucy about that.

"So, is anyone going to tell me what's going on?" said Desmond, turning over the bacon idly. Déjà smiled to herself.

"What do you want to know?"

Desmond thought for a moment. "Everything…"

She laughed and turned off the burner. "Well, I can't tell you everything," she replied apologetically.

"Of course," he said, sounding unsurprised.

"It'd take too long," Déjà assured him. She went to grab paper plates and started divvying out portions of the eggs. "Look, there was a reason why Lucy busted you out of Abstergo."

Desmond could've guessed that much. "I figured…" he replied. "I didn't think she'd do it for kicks and giggles."

Again, Déjà laughed at his small joke before looking serious again. "We need your help."

He turned to look at her. "For what?" he asked, sounding the slightest bit irritated or shocked, Déjà couldn't be sure. "Another treasure hunt through time?"

"Lucy has shown us everything you've done in the Animus so far," explained Déjà as Desmond started putting bacon on four of the five plates. "We know everything you do…. But Abstergo is gonna replace their Apple of Eden. The map your ancestor found guarantees it."

She stopped, looking up through the window with a distant expression.

"…The other assassins…they'll do what they can, where they can but…" she faded off. Desmond looked at her, concerned.

"What…? What is it?" he asked, setting down the plate. Déjà blinked and her vision cleared.

She glanced at him before replying. "We're losing this war, Desmond," she sighed. "The Templars…they're just too powerful and everyday…more of us die."

It was hard for Déjà to even admit that they were in a hopeless battle against the Templars. She was always headstrong about that; she'd always be the first one to jump in and give a rallying speech that the Order still had hope.

And many of her friends were out there, risking their lives for the cause but so many of them were dying, people she held close to her heart.

Déjà just wasn't sure how many more people had to die before she would break. Despite that, she couldn't afford to fall apart. Not now.

"I still don't see how I fit into this…" said Desmond, breaking through her thoughts. He had sounded mildly frustrated or something similar. She sort of smiled wryly at him, pushing away her sad musings into the back of her mind.

"We're going to train you," she answered while putting pieces of bread into the toaster, "turn you into one of us."

Desmond stared at her.

"What?" he said in complete disbelief. "No…. _No_, you haven't even seen me in action. I'm no good at this! And even if I was, it would take months, years even!"

Déjà couldn't help but laugh a little at his pessimism, although he didn't see it so funny. "No, not with the Animus," she replied. "You've heard of the Bleeding Effect? I'm sure Lucy explained it to you, right? You do, good. Well, that's how you'll be trained."

"But I'm just one guy!" he exclaimed.

She smirked. "Yeah, you are," she said almost darkly. "But, you know…sometimes, that's all you need."

Desmond didn't look convinced.

"So that's why she found him…" he said pensively, rinsing the pan that had cooked the bacon.

Déjà cocked her head to the side slightly in confusion.

"Lucy…back at Abstergo…she found one of my ancestors…" he clarified. "I think his name is Ezio or something like that."

She understood what he was talking about and nodded at Desmond.

"Lucy found that assassin so you could follow in his footsteps, learn everything he did, _just _like he did. That's years of training but it'll be absorbed into a matter of days for you," she said. "But you're not _just_ going to learn everything in the Animus. I'm here too, to teach you as well because you need real world experience."

He shook his head. "I don't get it," he admitted. "Lucy broke me out of Abstergo and brought me here just so you can teach me how to be an assassin."

Déjà made a head gesture that signified that she neither agreed or disagreed with the statement. "Well, there's more to it than that, but it'll have to wait," she said. "There's just too much to explain right now."

Desmond looked thoughtful. "All right," he said. "I'm in. Just tell me what you guys want me to do."

Her smile broadened to a grin. She wasn't really surprised by his agreement; Lucy was the one who had been worried that Desmond would want nothing to do with the Assassin Order or the Templars…or the war between them, given his past.

"Thank you, Desmond," Déjà said. "You have no idea how much that means to us…the Order…."

"Well, after what those Templar bastards put me through," he replied, "I'm ready, willing, and able."

She laughed. "That's the spirit!" she said. "With that attitude, you'll make a fine assassin."

Desmond sort of smiled back. Déjà looked behind him, noticing movement…Shaun walked up, looking very exhausted. She figured he had been up for most of the night, being the workaholic that he was.

"What's for breakfast?" Shaun said irritably, not taking notice of Desmond standing there. Shaun was never really that nice when he woke up.

"Good morning to you too, douchebag," said Déjà playfully, placing a plate in front of Shaun as he sat down at the counter. "Don't be rude, say hi."

Desmond watched as she hit Shaun across the back of his head. Shaun shot her hard look before he turned his eyes to Desmond, who hadn't sat down to eat but was nonetheless, eating. He analyzed the guy while he did the same to Desmond.

It was clear that he was the sarcastic intellect of the group with his black glasses and general demeanor. His hair red-blonde hair was done up in a fauxhawk and he was completely clean-shaven. The guy had light brown eyes and wore black slacks with a gray sweater vest and a white collared shirt under it. The sleeves were rolled up just under his elbows.

"You must be the infamous Subject 17," said Shaun uninterestedly. "Desmond Miles, was it?"

"Who're you?" Desmond asked, having a pretty good idea who this guy was already.

"I'm sorry, where are my manners?" he said. "My name is Shaun Hastings and it's been lovely chatting, but you'll have to excuse me."

Shaun then set to work with eating his breakfast. Desmond got the distinct impression that this guy wasn't very friendly, or personable. He figured that was because Shaun was from England…and a lot of English people that Desmond had encountered were generally rude.

"Don't worry about him," said Déjà, smiling as she set a cup of coffee down in front of Shaun. She ruffled his hair in a sisterly fashion before returning to the rest of the dishes. "He's just an asshole with a chip on his shoulder. It's best to just ignore him."

Desmond tried not to laugh as Shaun looked up from his food, disregarding Déjà's comment.

"Oh, Desmond, how did you sleep by the way?" he asked crossly. "Good? Yeah? I hope so, seeing that was my bed, you know? We have a perfectly good one up here for you. So-"

He was cut short when Déjà threw a dishtowel at his face.

"Hey!" he snapped, practically slamming the towel on the counter.

"Jeezus, Shaun," she sighed. "You're such a dick when you don't get enough sleep."

"No, he's just a dick when he wakes up," said another female voice.

Desmond looked over to his left and saw another woman he didn't recognize. She has black hair too, but was shorter than Déjà's and cut into choppy layers. She wore a khaki and red jumpsuit, and headphones were around her neck. The girl was short, shorter than Déjà. Desmond guessed this woman was about 5'3. Her dark eyes were bright with life and when she had spoken, her voice was on the raspy side and full of excitement.

Déjà grinned at her. "Basically, he's a dick all the time."

The women laughed at Shaun, who was not amused. "Oh, haha," he said. "You both are comic geniuses."

"And what's the matter with the bed up here anyways?" asked Déjà.

Shaun scowled at his food and sipped on his coffee before replying. "It's too soft, mine is harder…" he said irritably.

"You're such a baby," Déjà teased while shaking her head. She turned to Desmond, who looked a little confused.

"Desmond," said Déjà before she gestured to Rebecca. "This is Rebecca Crane."

Rebecca held out her hand to Desmond. "It's nice to meet you, dude," she said, shaking his hand tightly.

"Same," was all Desmond replied with. Rebecca sat down beside Shaun and started eating her eggs and toast, telling Shaun and Déjà something about "Baby" needing a few more adjustments before being ready for use.

Desmond had a minor nagging thought floating in his brain. "Wait, if this is a warehouse," he paused, "how is there a working shower, bedrooms, and a kitchen?"

The three of them looked at him.

"About four years ago, the Assassin Order took over this abandoned warehouse and did a bit of renovation so it could be used as a long term hideout," said Rebecca after a moment. "So far, it's been able to remain out of Abstergo's eyesight."

"That's not likely to last now that we have you here. They're going to be looking for us with full force," sighed Déjà, who was rather fond of the warehouse, despite that it trapped her to some degree. Shaun agreed with her. "Still, it's a nice place. Other teams use to take up residence here for some time but they left because they were needed elsewhere."

"The only time we leave is when we are running low on supplies," added Rebecca before nudging Shaun in the arm. "We make Shaun run errands."

The two women laughed, making Desmond think that there was an inside joke he didn't know of. Shaun just rolled his eyes but decidedly refused to add anything to the conversation.

"Technically, the Order only added this kitchen and the showers," continued Rebecca. "The bedrooms were originally offices or smaller storage rooms. Actually, the main office is the research room down the hall."

Desmond nodded, feeling a little more informed…not that knowing about their hideout was necessary but he had been curious.

"Yeah, it's been our home for the last five months-"

_"Six," _corrected Shaun, casting a dark glance at Déjà. She playfully scowled back at him, taking a drink of her water.

"Excuse me, six months," she said, mimicking Shaun's tone. "Before that, we were stationed in Spain."

"Anyways," said Shaun before anyone else could say anything. "We should really be getting to work. Time is precious…doubly so these days."

He stood up and threw his plate away and tossed the fork into the sink. "Shaun's right, we have a lot to do," said Déjà, who had just finished eating. "You done, Desmond?"

Desmond glanced at his plate. "Yeah."

The three of them quickly cleaned up the counter and Déjà put the last plate in the oven to keep warm.

"Where' Lucy?" asked Desmond as he followed the other three down the hall.

"She jumped in the shower after I did," said Rebecca simply. "She'll probably be up here when you are already in the Animus."

They entered a large room after just after Rebecca. To his left, there was a long wooden desk, with two computer monitors. On the wall above the long desk, were more maps and people like he had seen in the bedroom.

At the back of the room, there was a full size bed just randomly by the window. Maybe that was the bed that Shaun had been talking about earlier.

There was also a metal desk with a computer with dual monitors in the room. However, Desmond's attention was in the center of the room, where he had thought he had seen a red lounge chair.

Up close, it looked nothing like a lounge chair, but a high tech gadget that he only assumed was the Animus. His eyes quickly noted the second Animus behind it, both of them facing opposite to each other so that the headrests were closest together. Beside both headrests was a desk and triple monitor computer.

"Wait, there's two…" said Desmond, confused.

"You're quick on your toes, aren't you?" jabbed Shaun in a sarcastic tone.

Déjà was now growing a little irritated with his snide remarks. "Alright, Shaun. Enough already," she said firmly, giving him a stern look. Shaun shrugged and sat down at his desk.

"Déjà's going to be in the Animus while you are," said Rebecca. "Both of you are going to be reliving one of your ancestor's pasts."

"It'll have a higher chance of success if we search through two instead of only one," added Déjà. "I have ancestor's that knew the whereabouts of the Apple…but we lost a of records and people to tell us where it was. We probably have some of the same ancestors, to be honest."

"So…you're here to watch us?" Desmond asked Rebecca.

"Well, it's my job to take care of Baby," she replied, gazing affectionately at both Animuses. "It's my job to keep her up and running."

He drew in his eyebrows. "Baby…? You mean the Animus?"

Déjà sort of laughed at his confusion. "She refers to both of them together as Baby," she said as she turned on the computer at the metal desk. "They're both linked up to one system, so it's really like one Animus with two outlets."

"Actually, I prefer Animus 2.0," said Rebecca proudly, "since Baby is twice as awesome as anything you'll find at Abstergo!"

Desmond could see the childlike enthusiasm in Rebecca's dark brown eyes as she spoke of "Baby." He felt like there would be no problem with working with her…Shaun was the one he was worried about.

"The Templars might have deeper pocket than us," she continued, "but they've got no ambition…no passion, no competitive edge! That's why with all their resources, anything they can do, _I _can do better. Faster too."

She grinned almost mischievously and then nodded to herself. Rebecca was very proud of her work and would brag about it some more if they weren't hard pressed for time.

"Anyways, take a seat whenever you're ready and we'll get started," she said, sitting down at the desk with the triple monitors. "I just need to make a few more adjustments…"

Desmond eyed her as she got absorbed into her work and he glanced up at Déjà, who was waiting for the say so from Rebecca. He looked around, wondering what Shaun was doing.

"What's all that stuff for?" he asked Déjà.

Shaun, having heard him, turned in seat and gave the pair a hard look. "This _stuff, _Desmond…? Oh this _stuff_ is nothing special really, this _stuff_. It's just the _stuff _that keeps our entire operation from falling apart, really. It requires a great deal of concentration to keep it all moving so if you'll forgive me for not having time to chat idly like you."

Desmond was starting to get annoyed with Shaun and his rather rude demeanor towards him. Déjà picked up a pen off the desk and threw it across the room at Shaun. It hit squarely in the back of the head, to which he flinched.

_"Really,_ Déjà?" he snapped.

"Like I said," she said, giving Desmond an apologetic look. "Chip on his shoulder."

"Shaun's in charge of maintaining our knowledge archives," offered Rebecca behind them. "It's like a digital library."

"AKA, the boring stuff," said Déjà loud enough for Shaun to hear. "Shaun's going to be riding shotgun with Rebecca while we are both in the Animus."

"He'll be watching over Déjà's progress while I'm watching yours, Desmond. That isn't to say I'm not watching both but because there are two of you in the Animus, I may miss something from one person when concentrating on another," explained Rebecca. "Basically, if you two come across anything of note, people, places, events, etc, he'll create database entries that both of you can consult for additional information,"

Shaun sort of snorted indignantly. "Yeah, it's not _just _databases though," he said, turning around to look at them. "I also provide tactical support for the other assassins. You know Desmond, once you're out there…_doing stuff. _Risking their lives, little things like that!"

Déjà always found it amusing when Shaun was moody and behaving like a child throwing a tantrum. She could see Desmond was not all that fond of Shaun.

She leaned over slightly with her arms crossed to whisper. "He'll warm up to you eventually. That's just Shaun."

Desmond had a very skeptical expression on his face but nodded.

"And Lucy?" he asked.

Déjà's face darkened a shade but he didn't know why. "What about her?" she asked.

"What's her role?"

Déjà walked away and he thought he heard her say something like, "Good question." She sat down in one of the Animuses but looked at him. "Lucy basically is the secretary."

Déjà smirked to herself, knowing Lucy would hate to be called that. Shaun sort of chuckled quietly.

"Secretary?"

"She checks up on our progress and reports it back to the Grand Master, gathers information from the other assassins across the world, things like that," said Déjà. "She picks up the little things we may slack off on inadvertently."

_So basically, she useless, _she thought dryly.

"Oh."

"Alright, I'm ready if you two are," Rebecca said, rubbing her hands together. "Let's get started!"

"Down," said Déjà, excited. Desmond could only assume with the way she said "down" that it was a form of slang, meaning "cool"…although, he had never heard that word used in that context until now. He found it strange.

Desmond sat down on the other Animus and then laid his head back. "So, how does this work?" he asked as Rebecca stood up.

She showed him a large needle and Desmond eyed it hesitantly. "Of course…" he sighed as Rebecca neared him.

"Deep breath," she advised. Rebecca quickly stuck the needle into the vein at his inner elbow, causing to make a noise of pain.

"Oh what are you, a tiny child?" mocked Shaun from across the room. Déjà couldn't help it and laughed anyway.

"Shaun!" exclaimed Rebecca, looking at him with an exasperated expression before she turned back and put a device at Desmond's head. Immediately, Desmond's eyes started to droop.

Rebecca put her attention on Déjà just as Lucy walked in the room. "You're just in time," said Rebecca, practically stabbing Déjà with the needle. Déjà made no noise but she had to admit, it was painful. "We're about to start."

"Excellent," said Lucy, setting down her food at the metal desk.

Déjà wanted to comment on how Lucy didn't say thank you for her meal but Rebecca had placed a device over her head and she couldn't keep her eyes open any longer.

"Alright, here we go!" said Rebecca's enthusiastic voice somewhere beside her.

At first, everything was pitch black. However, after a few moments, everything turned white with strange faint lines surrounding her, creating a grid.

"Nice of you to join me," said Desmond's voice.

Déjà looked around at the vast expanse of nothingness and found Desmond on her right. She grinned. "This is probably the only time we'll see each other in the Animus," she said, winking at him. Her voice had the slightest bit of an echo to it, which was trippy.

He agreed. "Most likely."

"Good luck!" she said, clapping him on the shoulder.

With a flash of light, Desmond disappeared from her view. It took a moment for the world to solidify around her but when her eyes adjusted, she realized she was sitting at the back of a wagon or carriage with an older man beside her while they watched the dirt road fall behind them.

"Papa, if I were to get married to one of them, how will I continue to train under your guidance!" Déjà was saying to the man, who she assumed now was her father.

He sort of smiled and then put an arm around his favorite daughter.

"You are already quite skilled, my sweet Trinity," he replied, kissing her forehead. "There is not much else I could teach you. It is now the time when you take your skills to the outside world and better them."

Trinity gazed up at her father affectionately, happy to hear those words from him. Her father was getting older; she understood that, though it pained her. She could see it in the small wrinkles around his lips and blue eyes. His long, dark hair was tied back to keep it out of his face.

"I do not like your face without hair, father," she laughed after a moment. "You look so funny."

Her father smiled. "Your mother was not so fond of the beard," he admitted, chuckling as well in his deep voice. "But between you and me, I liked it."

Trinity grinned.

"Father!" called a voice from inside the carriage.

"Yes, my son!" replied Trinity's father.

"How much longer until Firenze?" said the male's voice. A dark head of hair peeked out from the side and Trinity turned to look down at him. "My butt is sore."

"Another hour," said the driver at the front of the carriage who was manning the reins.

"Thank you, messare!" said her older brother before going back into the carriage.

Trinity snorted. "It seems Valente is impatient," said her father, smiling. She agreed and leaned against her father's chest.

They fell silent, only the sound of the horses' hooves hitting the dirt and wheels of the wagon squeaking obnoxiously.

"I cannot believe I am forced to wear these ridiculous dresses!" she said suddenly in a disgusted tone. She glared at her maroon dress her mother had forced her to wear.

"You know your mother would not want you to wear breeches in front of our friends," said her father. "She would be most embarrassed if you were to not behave as a woman. You know that wearing breeches is looked down upon."

Trinity growled. Her father smiled to himself, already aware she was about to say something else.

"And I do not even like either of those boys," she said darkly. "I forgot his name but the younger one is mean to me."

"That was five years ago," said her father. "He was young then."

She scoffed. "That is no excuse for throwing rocks at me. If I had known how to at the time, I would have beaten him to a pulp."

Her father laughed at this. "That is not very lady-like, my dear."

"He would have deserved it," she replied loftily.

Even though she was only fourteen, soon to be fifteen, she acted much older. "Uniting our families has been a desire of mine for a long time now, Trinity."

"So make Arietta or Francesca marry one of them!" she exclaimed. "Not me! I have no desire to ever be tied down a man who will not respect me. I am an assassin, father! Not a wife."

She felt guilty though. She knew that her father also had a deep wish to see his first daughter in a wedding gown and marrying someone.

"On the topic of assassins," said her father, diverting the subject, "you _must _not speak of anything involving the Order. None of his children know."

Trinity had known that but she found it strange that they were not told.

"I understand father."

Again, the fell quiet. The scenery was vast and green; the farms they passed were being tended to by their owners.

"Ah, there it is!" cried the driver. "Firenze!"

Trinity turned in her seat, seeing the walls around the city off in the distance. She smiled to herself, remembering the last time she was here five years prior, when she was only nine.

"At last!" shouted her two brothers, who were leaning out of the windows of the carriage. "We made it!"

"We should head back inside the carriage when we are closer," suggested her father. Trinity agreed to it, not taking her eyes off of Florence.

* * *

><p>Desmond's eyes cleared after a flash of bright light blinded him. Once his eyes adjusted, he realized he was inside a house, a woman talking quickly to the children beside him. Desmond assumed that they were his ancestor's siblings and the woman was his mother.<p>

"I do not see why it is so important for us to look our best," he heard himself moan as his mother fussed with his hair for a moment. She had her children all lined up, dressed in their best attire, so she could inspect them over.

His mother moved on to her only daughter next to him. "Ezio," she said curtly to him, "your father and I already _told_ you. We've received word that the Aldinucci's are arriving today."

Ezio nudged his older brother standing beside him and secretively rolled his eyes. "I still don't see the relevance-" he began.

"They haven't come to visit in five years…when you were only eleven," his mother cut in, smoothing the youngest of her children's shirt. "Don't you remember?"

"Not really," Ezio replied unconcernedly.

His mother held down a snort. "Of course not," she said in an irritated tone and more so to herself. "Well, since you apparently care not for family friends, let me remind you. Giuliano is a childhood friend of your father and Jovanna is Giuliano's wife. They have five children, two older boys, Dante and Valente, and their three daughters. Trinity, Arietta, and Francesca."

Ezio _did _remember; he remembered how aggravating the girls were to play with, especially the eldest daughter. Ezio even recalled a time when they had last visited when he threw rocks at her head to bother her. He and Federico, his older brother, preferred to spend their time with the Aldinucci boys. However, he didn't see the point of telling his mother that he remembered; he really was just trying to annoy her.

From what Ezio could recall from a conversation with his father a few years back, the Aldinucci's lived in Venezia, Giuliano having been quite successful with his banking branch there. Actually, now that he thought about it, Ezio thought he remembered his father saying that Giuliano was the reason he wanted to pursue banking himself.

On a side thought, he wondered why they arbitrarily decided to name their first daughter after an English term from the church….

"How long are they staying, mother?" he heard his sister ask, bringing him out of his thoughtfulness.

"About a month."

"A month!" said Ezio aghast. That meant he would be forced to be nice to the Aldinucci daughters longer than he had anticipated. He groaned.

His mother turned to him with a dark expression. "Ezio, _please_ do not embarrass me or your father in front of the Aldinuccis," she said sternly. "I will not have you make a fool of the Auditore name."

He inwardly sighed. "Mi dispiace, mama," he said in a fake apologetic tone. "I promise I will be on my best behavior."

Federico snorted cynically at this under his breath.

Their father came into the room with a bright smile. "They have arrived," he said gently. "Come, let us greet them outside."

Ezio could not help but roll his eyes again, not really interested in playing meet and greet. He had so many other things he could be doing with his time…like wooing girls or beating up Vieri di Pazzi.

The Auditore family walked outside of the palazzo as a carriage stopped outside their gate. The driver of the carriage jumped down and hurried towards the door.

Once he opened it, an older gentleman stepped out.

"Giuliano!" said Ezio's father, not able to wait a moment longer to greet his friend. Giuliano broke out into a smile of his own and embraced his father.

"Giovanni, it has been too long," he said, holding him by the shoulders.

"Only a year but yes, far too long," said Giovanni with a short chuckle.

The driver, meanwhile, was helping out a woman. Ezio's mother, once having been kissed on the cheeks by Giuliano, greeted this woman warmly.

"Oh, Maria!" she the woman, embracing his mother.

The two Aldinucci boys stepped out of the large carriage, both helping out the girls. The first two were small, slight, and young. They looked a little confused as to who they should greet, if anyone at all, so they stood together quietly.

The eldest son let out the last girl before the driver shut the door and started to pull off some luggage at the top of the carriage.

Ezio was surprised. He didn't think that the eldest Aldinucci daughter would have gotten as pretty as she did in the last five years. Last he saw her, her jet-black hair had been much shorter, though now it was long and flowing past her shoulders. Her piercingly blue eyes didn't meet him and he wondered if she was doing so on purpose. She was no longer quite as young looking as she was before, but taking on womanlier charms. She filled out quite nicely too, especially around the bosom area, as well as grew taller.

A sharp pain hit him in the side. Ezio looked at Federico irritably.

"Your mouth was hanging open, little brother," he laughed.

"It was not!" protested Ezio, almost positive it wasn't.

Federico just grinned and turned his gaze back at the eldest Aldinucci daughter. "She is pretty though. Definitely a skirt you'd chase after, huh?"

Ezio shrugged indifferently, trying to recover from his early staring. "Eh," he said apathetically. "She is nothing special. Pretty, yes…but not beautiful."

Federico cocked his head slightly to the left. "I beg to differ…" he replied thoughtfully.

"You can chase her skirt then," said Ezio with a smirk.

His older brother didn't reply but instead, chuckled lightly. Their father beckoned his children over to say hello the family.

The only thing Ezio was certain about…was that it was going to be a long month.

* * *

><p><strong>I will try to always post the translations in the actual story if I need to. If it's only a small sentence or word, I'll just post it here. ^_^<br>**

**Mi dispiace = **I'm sorry

**Messare = **sir


	4. May it Never Change Us

**I don't own anything of the Assassin's Creed franchise. All credits to Ubisoft or wherever else they should be.**

**Ciao a tutti! (Hello, everyone!) Please enjoy this next chapter. Sorry, Deja doesn't make much of an appearance here but this is just to get the storyline going now as well as a feel of how I'm going to be writing. Thank you also, for all the lovely reviews and alerts! I feel so honored. To answer a question, yeshhh, there may be Deja/Desmond but I haven't decided quite yet. Also, I hope you guys don't mind long chapters. I write as if I were writing a book, generally. I mean, I figure it's better than super short chapters, right?  
><strong>

**Anyways, I love reviews. ^_^ they make me super happy. Even if they're small. And I don't mind if you flame here. I mean, it'd make me sad but at least it's some type of review. It'll help me improve my writing. xoxo  
><strong>

Chapter Three: "May it Never Change Us."

_"What are the odds of that?" _said Rebecca's voice as if it were everywhere. Déjà and Desmond were back in the white expanse of nothingness, with the semi-transparent grid floating around them. They had just finished up their ancestors' memories of being reintroduced to each other and spent a little less then a month together. Now Déjà and Desmond were waiting for the next significant memory sequence to launch itself.

"Of what?" said Desmond and Déjà in unison, their voices echoing.

_"Rebecca was referring to the coincidence of your ancestors not only being alive at the same time, but actually knowing each other as well," _clarified Shaun's voice. _"There wasn't a high probability that this would occur."_

"I'm not all that surprised," admitted Déjà honestly, because she really wasn't. "Sounds like Trinity's and Ezio's dads wanted her to marry one of the Auditore boys."

_"Clearly, it wasn't a very appealing notion to her," _replied Shaun, sounding somewhat distracted with something. _"…speaking of Trinity, I found it rather curious that I cannot find a single thing about her."_

"I don't understand," said Desmond, walking around aimlessly. Shaun's voice sighed impatiently.

"Wait, there's no records of her _at all?"_ cut in Déjà to clarify so that Shaun would have no reason to give Desmond a sarcastic remark. "That doesn't seem right."

_"No, there's nothing," _repeated Shaun's voice around the pair. _"At least with Ezio, I found his school records, which cease when he was seventeen…after that, not a trace of him. His mother's extensive diary entries mention him hundreds of times as a child…but Trinity? It's like she didn't even exist. No school records, no written entries, nothing…._

_"For example, I found record of all the other Aldinucci children, mainly their school records. I even the two boys training to be assassins, Dante and Valente…. Normally, I'd say she was kept secret, perhaps being a illegitimate child, if there is nothing about her but clearly she was not meant to be a secret if they were trying to marry her off."_

He had a very valid point.

"Strange…" said Déjà thoughtfully.

_"Anyways, I'll keep Trinity's and Ezio's profile updated as we go along. Remember to note anything for me to archive."_

They agreed to it just as the white surroundings dissipated. Déjà vanished from beside Desmond and he thought back to the earlier memory they wrapped up a few minutes ago while he waited for his surroundings to fill in.

There wasn't a lot that happened in the month that the Aldinuccis stayed with the Auditores. Federico and Ezio had been informed that one of them was supposed to marry Trinity Aldinucci. Ezio thought that highly amusing as well as highly revolting in every which way and immediately began doing everything to sabotage any possibility of him being tied down to her.

Trinity had made it clear that she was not interested in marrying either one of them, though Federico attempted to court her anyways in an attempt to appease his father. She was adamant, however, seeing that she would consistently refuse his advances on her, no matter how flattering he was…though, he was not all that talented at wooing her.

Ezio and Trinity were at constant odds, though most of it was not in the audience of their parents, only because they wanted to avoid a long-winded lecture from their parents. They didn't necessarily loathe one another but they did not get along as well as Trinity and Federico.

When not bickering with Ezio or running from Federico's misplaced affections, she was forced to spend her time with Claudia, to her displeasure. Trinity was not so fond of Claudia because she was far too girly for her and Claudia had a tendency to be bossy. Ezio had a much easier time hanging out with Dante and Valente, the two Aldinucci, boys with Federico. Arietta and Francesca played with Petruccio when he was not feeling too ill.

During all this, Giovanni and Giuliano were always in Giovanni's office, while their wives tended to the house. Several officials from Firenze were always coming in and out of the Auditore palazzo at their fathers' beck and call. Both men spent many hours in the office, speaking in low voices and going over maps and other plans.

And then the Aldinucci's left, almost abruptly, a week before the original departure date. Giuliano was called back to Venezia on urgent business. Whatever it was, Giovanni accompanied them, leaving Ezio rather confused as to what was so important in Venezia. Then again, his father left on many trips to various cites in Italia for business.

The affair of binding the Auditores and the Aldinuccis was dropped, based on that Trinity's mindset was "too young" for marriage and that they'd wait another year. Ezio hoped that wasn't the case and that they would return later…when she was already married.

The streets of Firenze solidified in front of him, though unnoticed, and Ezio turned to smile at the dozen of teenaged boys behind him.

Ezio shouted a rallying phrase to them and they all huzzaed in approval at the statement. He let them continue for a second in their praise.

"Silencio, my friends, silencio," he said, gesturing for them to quiet. Once they did, he spoke again. "Grazie." _(Translation: silence_ and _thank you.)_

He started to pace in front of them, looking as impressive as he could. "Do you know what brings us here tonight?" he asked his friends.

They didn't reply.

"Honor," he told them, before his face went dark. "Vieri di Pazzi slanders my family's name and forces his own misery on us! If-"

A rock falling at Ezio's feet cut him off and he turned to face the previously empty street before him.

It was Vieri and his own gang of men. "Enough of your nonsense, grullo! _(stupid)_" shouted Vieri with a scowl on his rather unattractive face.

Ezio smirked as his friends all spoke at Vieri's insolence.

"Buona sera _(good evening)_, Vieri," he said in a mock pleasant voice. "We were _just_ talking about you."

Vieri glared hard across the street from the shadows. Ezio, however, was not intimidated and continued on. "Although, I'm surprised to see _you _here," he said, walking forward in an arrogant manner. "I thought the Pazzi hired others to do their dirty work."

"It is _your_ family that cries for gods when there is trouble!" laughed Vieri dryly. "Afraid to handle things yourself?"

"Your sister seemed quite satisfied with the handling I gave her earlier," fired back Ezio easily. He smirked and his friends behind him all laughed at the smart remark.

At the insult, Vieri looked enraged. He ordered for his own friends to go after Ezio before throwing a large rock. It hit Ezio squarely in the face, causing him to stumble back in surprise. The rock left him a large cut to the lip and it began to bleed.

Because of that rather low move, throwing a rock…of all things, Ezio's friends ran after Vieri's men.

Ezio, with a dark look in his light hazel eyes, walked forward and met his first four boys, all in fighting stances. One was quick to throw a punch at Ezio, but he dodged it easily and swung back, landing a good blow to the boy's face. Ezio didn't let up in speed and quickly knocked him out while another boy attempted to attack him from behind.

In less than three minutes, Ezio bested all four boys, though he was nailed a few times by a few punches. One was in the back of the head, which was the most painful and caused Ezio to become slightly dizzy for a moment.

After the last man had fallen, with the majority of Ezio's friends still standing, he advanced towards Vieri, who didn't take part of the fight. That didn't surprise Ezio because Vieri was a coward when abruptly, two more boys surrounded him.

Ezio could tell one was tired and had been hit a few times already so he went after him first. He pushed the other guy to the ground and threw a few punches at the boy who was weary, missing one and landing the second two, knocking him out.

"Hey, behind you!" said a familiar voice. Ezio looked up from the guy he had just knocked out and saw his older brother grinning at him.

"Federico!" said Ezio, a little surprised. "What're you doing here?"

One of Vieri's men ran after Federico but he easily dodged him and pushed him aside. "I wanted to see if baby brother had finally learned how to fight!" he laughed as Ezio headbutted the same guy and throwing him to the ground.

"And?" Ezio said, arms open for a good review.

Federico nodded approvingly. "You have style," he said smiling, clapping his brother on the shoulder. "But endurance is what counts."

Ezio rolled his eyes but chuckled.

"Let's see how many you can ruin before they get the best of you, eh?" said Federico as more of Vieri's men ran after them.

Ezio had no problem holding his own against the next five that came after him. In fact, he had even managed to push one of them over into the river. Federico was fairing just as well and in five minutes, all ten boys were unconscious.

"Fall back! Fall back!" shouted Vieri, turning to run away. Ezio was, again, unsurprised that Vieri was running away with his tail between his legs but it didn't lessen Ezio's anger at him.

He strode forward, having every intention of chasing down Vieri and beating him until he was out cold…but Federico stepped in front of Ezio with an amused smile on his face.

"Hold on," he said, a hand on Ezio's shoulder.

"What?" said Ezio, glancing at Vieri's slowly disappearing figure; a bit more anger rose up because he was getting away. "We almost won this!"

Federico shook his head and gestured to his little brother's face. "Your lip."

Ezio reached up and touched his bleeding wound, looking at the blood on his fingertips. "Eh, just a scratch," he said, unconcerned.

"Let a doctor decide…" suggested Federico.

His little brother groaned.

"That is not necessary! Besides, I have no money for this doctor of yours," he said, rubbing his fingertips to show the sign of money.

Federico chuckled. "Wasting them on women and wine, I see."

Ezio narrowed his eyes and smirked at his older brother. "I would _hardly _call it wasting," he said wryly. "…Loan me some florins then."

His brother eyed him.

"Or have you done the same with yours?" pressed Ezio. Federico only laughed and Ezio knew that he had. Federico would never be the type to admit to the fact that he had spent his florins on women, especially after his depressingly failed attempt to win over Trinity's heart two years ago.

"Search them," said Federico, turning to Vieri's men lying along the street, unconscious or too sore to get up. "They're bound to have something."

Ezio rolled his eyes and bent down to the nearest body. He found his coin purse rather quickly and went about doing the same to the next several men. Most did not have much on them so Ezio ended up searching more than he thought he would.

"Va bene _(okay)_, that should be enough," said Federico, looking at the setting sun across the river. "Now let's get out of here before the guards arrive."

Ezio followed his brother, who started to run down the street. They dodged a few civilians as they sprinted, causing some alarm with the women and their behavior.

"Hurry Ezio!" he called, just as he started to climb up some boxes and onto a joist. "The sooner we get to the doctor, the sooner we can sleep."

They climbed up to the top of the roof and ran across it. There were luckily no guards standing watch on the roofs, because civilians weren't allowed up there.

Federico leapt across one roof to the next, checking the streets to see if the doctor he was searching for was down there. Once he saw who he was looking for, he leapt onto a ledge below. Federico dropped down, Ezio following, and walked a few feet before he saw the doctor.

He was a man with a black cloak, a strange hat, and an even stranger bird mask, a mask that Ezio always found slightly unnerving since childhood. Federico greeted the doctor, who turned to the two boys.

"Federico Auditore," he said in near monotone. "Why am I not surprised…?"

The elder Auditore smiled before the doctor saw Ezio's face. The strange birdman reached out and grabbed Ezio's chin with a leather-gloved hand, inspecting the cut. It was no longer bleeding profusely but there was quite a bit of dry blood on it.

"You have made quite a mess of yourself, young man," said the doctor disapprovingly.

"It's nothing really," insisted Ezio, not liking the idea of being tended to.

"You must help him," implored Federico, though smiling broadly at his younger brother. "That pretty face of his is his only asset."

Ezio immediately threw a death glare at his brother and cursed him under his breath, punching him in the arm. Federico automatically laughed heartily at this while the doctor began to clean his cut. It stung a little but Ezio said nothing.

"There we are," said the doctor a minute or two later. "Now, perhaps you two should avoid getting into fights, eh?"

"Grazie," said Federico as Ezio handed the doctor his money. The cut was cleaned and the bleeding had stopped completely, but it was clear that it would leave a scar.

They walked away, the sun now gone and it was dark. The streets were still busy in Firenze though, for many people were heading home.

"Quite a night, huh?"

"Indeed," Ezio agreed. "I only wish that all of them were like this…"

Federico eyed him, an eyebrow raised.

"Oh wait," continued Ezio, "they are!"

Both boys laughed at his joke and Federico stopped walking. "We should be heading home, Ezio. Father will be wondering where we have run off to."

His younger brother's face dropped a bit. "Right…" he sighed, thinking of his father. "I'd rather avoid a lecture…"

The older Auditore smiled slyly. "You up for a little race first?" he asked. Ezio grinned.

"To where?"

Federico looked around for a moment in thought. "To the roof of that church."

Ezio agreed to it and returned the wry look.

"Alright, on the count of three," said Federico, in a ready stance to run. "One…two…three!"

Federico was the first to go and sprinted up boxes and ran across a few beams. Ezio easily tailed him and they both landed on the rooftop of a building at the same time. Federico ran across the roof and climbed up the side, but Ezio was already ahead of him. He leapt onto a platform, cutting Federico off.

Ezio was the first to get his feet onto the church roof but Federico wasn't all that upset to have lost. He only clapped his brother on the back in congratulations. Immediately, Federico climbed the tall spire up to the very top of the church, where there was a large cross atop it. Ezio followed him closely.

"It's a good life, my friend," said Federico as he helped Ezio up.

"The best," he replied with a smile. "May it never change."

They stared out at the scenery of Firenze for a moment.

"And may it never change us."

They were silent as the night air again. There was a wordless connection to Firenze, one that both boys could never truly convey in script or words.

"Well, enough of that," sighed the older Auditore. "We _really _should be heading home."

He moved to the edge to climb down but Ezio put a hand to his chest. "Wait," he said, before turning to look off a few streets over.

Federico glanced over at what Ezio was and shook his head. "Ezio," he said in a slightly exasperated tone. "Let Cristina sleep…"

"There will be time enough for that…_later,"_ jested the younger brother, winking.

Federico looked resigned and sat down, leaning against the cross. He didn't reply to his brother as he made his way to the wooden blank that was jutting from the back of the tower. Ezio settled into a crouch and looked down to locate the bale of hay. Once he was sure, he leapt off the building, falling quickly.

He landed safely in the hay and he was about to get out but he heard Vieri's distinct voice come around the corner.

"Damn," Ezio hissed. "I better stay hidden."

"Keep looking!" Vieri spat to two of his friends. "He couldn't have gotten far."

Once Ezio was sure they left, he climbed out and brushed off the straws off his tunic. He didn't want to meet Cristina looking like a farm animal.

He knew he should probably avoid any of Vieri's men along the way to Cristina's, though it really was only a half a minute's walk from the hay bale.

Ezio rounded the corner and looked up at her closed window, though he could see candlelight, which signified she was still awake.

"Cristina!" he hissed. There was no immediate reply. "Cristina!"

"Who is it?" said her voice after a minute.

"Me!"

The both window doors opened and she peered over. "Oh, Ezio," she said, sounding unsurprised. "I should have known."

He grinned at her. "May I come in?" he asked with a flirtatious tone.

"Fine," she sighed apathetically. "But only for a minute."

"A minute's all I need," he replied with a provocative smirk, climbing up the vines that grew along the house.

"Indeed…"

"Wait," he hastened to say. "That came out wrong."

He climbed up into the window and she was sitting at her vanity table, only in her nightgown and looking stoic. She didn't look at him, and he realized she was playing the hard to get card.

"Come here," he said, gazing at her with an outstretched hand.

Cristina rolled her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. She pushed out her chair noisily and walked over to her.

Immediately, she noticed something. "What happened to your face?" she inquired, looking concerned. He averted his eyes away for a moment before smiling, almost sheepishly.

"I got into a fight with Vieri," he replied honestly. Cristina gave him a dark look.

"Ezio…" she said disapprovingly.

He put a finger to her lips and smiled. "Shh…" he whispered.

Ezio let his fingers brush across her rosy cheeks and her cold demeanor immediately vanished at his touch. After a moment of gazing into her beautiful, brown eyes, he gently kissed her waiting lips.

Cristina pulled away for a second to breathe and Ezio took this opportunity to push her sleeves over her shoulders. She didn't stop him, letting her nightgown fall to the floor and leaving her bare.

Ezio let his eyes linger down her body before he smirked at her. He saw her blush and kissed her once more, only this time with a more force and fire.

They fell back onto her bed and both were lost to a world of passion…

Needless to say, Cristina's father chased Ezio out of her room the next morning. He sent guards after Ezio too but they were unsuccessful in apprehending him, as they always are. Cristina's father found this aggravating.

After a minor lecture from his father about his son's reckless behavior, Ezio was sent to do a few tasks. He delivered a few letters for his father around Firenze for him and when he came back to the palazzo, he found his little sister, Claudia, weeping in the courtyard.

Ezio had to pry it out of her but he found out that Claudia's suitor, Duccio, was cheating on her. Enraged…Ezio ended up beating up Duccio, especially because he was seen with not only a hideous woman, but she was quite large in stature, or also known as fat.

When he came back to tell Claudia of his successful "talk" with Duccio and that he would never bother Claudia again, Ezio found Petruccio staring up a feather on the roof. Ezio didn't want his little brother to get into trouble for being out of bed because he was incredibly ill so Ezio collected some feathers for him and then sent him back to bed.

Now…he was asked to run an errand with his mother. He followed her out of the palazzo, his mother casually walking.

"I know about your fight with Vieri," she said in a knowing tone.

Ezio swallowed. "What fight?" he asked innocently.

"Let's not play these games, my son," she said, glancing behind her to give him a motherly look. Her son averted his gaze, looking guilty.

"He spoke ill of us," he replied, wanting to justify his irresponsible behavior. "I could not allow him to continue."

"I'm sure he is having a hard time dealing with the accusations against his father, Francesco di Pazzi," explained his mother. "He is many things, and none of them good."

Ezio glanced at his mother as he walked alongside her through the bustling streets. She looked thoughtful for a moment or so.

"Although, I've never suspected Francesco to be capable of murder," she admitted.

Curious, Ezio pressed. "What will happen to him?"

"I imagine there will be a trial," she said unconcernedly.

"Will father speak at it?"

His mother sort of frowned. "He'll have to," she replied. "He's the one with the evidence."

Ezio figured as much. "Still," he sighed. "I wish there was another way."

"You have nothing to fear, my son," she assured him. "Everyone wants justice done…. It's an unfortunate state of affairs but it will pass."

They fell silent as they continued on to a large opening in the streets, much like a courtyard. It was rather busy here, with many civilians talking amongst themselves. As they walked, Ezio walked by a group of courtesans, who all made provocative gestures when he passed. Immediately, he flashed them his patented flirtatious grin. His mother was unsurprised with this but did not comment on it.

She walked up to the largest building in the courtyard.

"Here we are."

Ezio's mother went up to the door and knocked politely a few times. After a moment, the door opened and a pleasant young man with a cape and funny hat stood there.

"Hello, Leonardo," said his mother with a gentle smile.

"Madone Maria!" he said, returning the look with a brighter one of his own before kissing her on the cheeks. Ezio eyed this man's enthusiasm doubtfully.

"This is my son, Ezio," she said, gesturing to him.

Leonardo grinned at him and greeted him warmly with a deep bow. Ezio bowed at him and returned the polite greeting to him.

"Let me go and fetch the paintings," Leonardo said to Ezio's mother, turning to his workshop. "I'll be right back."

She turned to him, looking pleased. "He is a _very_ talented artist."

Ezio shrugged, unimpressed. "I imagine," he replied indifferently.

"Self-expression is _vital_ to understanding and enjoying life," she said firmly. "You should find an outlet."

Ezio figured she would say something like that. His mother loved art and always was patron to some of the leading artists of the moment.

He looked at her with a bored expression. "I have _plenty_ of outlets," he assured her.

She gave him an unconvinced and dark look. "I meant besides vaginas," she said bluntly, now slightly irritated with him.

Ezio's shoulders slumped. _"Mother…" _he groaned, though slightly surprised at her audacity with the statement.

Leonardo had just stepped out of his workshop with a crate of paintings. "Back to your house then?" he said cheerfully.

"Sí, sí," said Ezio's mother. "Ezio, help Leonardo, will you?"

Ezio half-heartedly glared at the back of his mother's head and took the crate from Leonardo's arms. The pair began to walk back the Auditore palazzo with Ezio leading the way.

"So, Ezio," said Leonardo pleasantly, "what do _you_ do?"

"He's been working for his father," his mother replied before he could.

Leonardo seemed interested. "Ahh," he said thoughtfully. "You're going to be a banker?"

"For now," said Ezio honestly, though he wanted nothing to do with banking. If Ezio could spend the rest of his life like he was now, that would be perfect…. But he wanted to get off the topic of himself so his mother wouldn't have a chance to embarrass him as of the moment. "But you…art, was it?"

"Truth be told, it's been difficult for me to settle," Leonardo replied after a moment. "Painting is nice…but I often feel like my work lacks…I don't know…a purpose."

Ezio secretively rolled his eyes, not all that interested but he continued to listen while he adjusted his grip on the crate.

"Does that make sense?" asked Leonardo. "I'd rather contribute more practically…more _directly_. Like architecture perhaps or anatomy. I am not that content to only capture the world…but I want to change it."

"Oh Leonardo," said Ezio's mother with an impressed air, which made Ezio want to gag himself. "I have no doubt you will go on to do great things."

"Grazie mille _(thank you so much), _that's kind of you," laughed Leonardo, a little pleased.

By now they made it to the palazzo, to which Ezio was grateful for because he was tired of listening to his mother praise Leonardo over something, in Ezio's mind, as useless as art. He put the paintings down in the courtyard in front of the door.

"Thank you for your help, son," said his mother. "Don't let me keep you from your other duties."

"It was nice to meet you, Ezio," said Leonardo sincerely. "I hope our paths will cross again."

Ezio agreed with a forced smile while nodding his head in respect. Leonardo took the paintings inside and his mother followed. Ezio expected by now, his father would be needing him again so he went to go find him.

He heard his mother speaking even more praises to Leonardo down the hall but he ignored it as he knocked on his father's office door. His mother may as well adopt the painter at this point.

"Come in, come in," he heard his father's voice. Ezio opened the door and found his father standing behind his desk, looking rather anxious or something similar.

"I need these packages delivered to associates of mine in the city," said his father without delay, carefully sliding a few envelopes towards his son on the desk. Ezio glanced at them before returning his gaze to his father's face, still holding an expression of deep concern.

"I also need you to retrieve a message for me from a pigeon coop not to far from here," added his father.

"Va bene," said Ezio with a small bow. "I'll get it done."

His father nodded approvingly before crossing his arms. "Come back here when you have finished," he continued, distracted. "There are some things we need to discuss."

Ezio's heart dropped a little, hoping it had nothing to with his behavior in the last few days. He knew his father had been upset with him earlier but Ezio didn't think that there were going to be repercussions. Hopefully, it would regard other matters, especially since Ezio thought the issues had been resolved this morning.

"And please, my son," his father said, putting his hands together as if praying. "Stay out of trouble, hm?"

He looked very seriously at Ezio and Ezio understood that he was not joking. He didn't want to cross his father anymore than he had.

"Of course father," he replied, taking the packages and heading out. Ezio slipped them into the inside of his shirt so he could free-run across the buildings.

Once he was outside, Ezio broke out into a sprint, immediately scaling the building blocking his progress. He ignored the blank stares from some of them people below, though Ezio heard someone comment on his lunacy. He found that amusing and continued to climb. At the top, he jogged across the roofs, leaping from building to building to where his father had indicated the first delivery.

"Over here!" a voice hissed as Ezio was running. He came to an abrupt halt, looking for where the voice had come from.

"Here, boy!" it repeated.

Ezio looked to his left and saw a man trying to flag him down across the way, hiding in the shadows of a corner of the roof. From here, Ezio could tell that he was not of nobility, which was surprising. Ezio didn't know his father had associates of his status. As Ezio jumped down and quickly walked across a narrow beam over an empty street, he noticed that the man was a little dirty and disheveled.

In fact…he sort of reminded Ezio as a thief.

Ezio reached into his shirt and pulled out the first envelope to give to the man, though he was wary of handing it over to someone who looked like him.

"I have a delivery from-"

"Giovanni Auditore?" the thief cut in quickly.

Ezio eyed him, wondering why he looked frantic. "Yes…" he replied slowly.

The man kept looking around Ezio's shoulder almost anxiously, and it was beginning to unnerve Ezio. He wondered why the thief was behaving this way…as if he were going to be caught or something.

"Were you followed?" asked the thief urgently.

"No…" Ezio said, confused. He looked around him to see if he could see what the thief was searching for. "Why would I be followed?"

The thief ignored him. "Give me the package."

Ezio pulled it out and the man practically swiped the envelope from Ezio's hand.

"Tell your father they are moving tonight," he said quickly, as he was turning to leave. "He should to."

"Who's moving?" questioned Ezio, thoroughly mystified. "What's going on here?"

The thief did not reply as he was already sprinting across the joist that Ezio had arrived on.

"Wait!" he called to the man. "Come back! Explain yourself!"

The thief did not stop and disappeared when he jumped down from the roof. Ezio exhaled heavily, wondering what the hell that was about before he continued on with his next delivery.

The whole way to the designated courtyard that his father had instructed him to be at, he wondered just what exactly the thief had been speaking of. He had seemed so worried, just like his father had….

Something wasn't right…

Ezio climbed down a metal balcony, covered in vines and flowers, and dropped down to street level. He was in the courtyard now, but no one was in it. Ezio approached the fountain, still pondering.

Maybe it had something to do with the upcoming trial for Francesco di Pazzi.

"You Giovanni's kid?" said a gruff voice behind him where the entrance to the courtyard was.

Ezio turned to see two figures, one of an older man and one of a woman. The man looked very similar to the thief, with the same haggard look, torn and dirty clothing, and scruff on his face.

The woman however, was a little cleaner and Ezio was very familiar with her kind. She was a courtesan, not one he had ever encountered before, but he had friendly company like hers many a time.

She was wearing the emblematic dress of a courtesan, one that showed off more skin than proper women would wear. Her dress was cream as he eyed her. The woman was not attractive really, as far as facial features go, but Ezio could see the appeal in her body.

"No, idiota _(idiot),"_ she was saying irritably. "He just happens to look _exactly _like the man…"

The older thief growled at his companion and she scowled back.

"Give it here," he demanded, holding it hand for the package Ezio was holding. Ezio was again, wary to hand it over to these types of people but he trusted his father and what he was doing….

Ezio didn't step forward but leaned over to hand it to the man, trying to make sure they had little contact. The thief found this amusing.

"Don't worry, boy," he smirked. "We're not contagious."

Ezio wasn't so sure with how dirty he looked.

"At least…_I'm_ not," he jested, looking at the courtesan. She glared at him, hitting him in the chest before they turned away to leave.

Once they left, Ezio did too.

He was beginning to question his father's business practices as he made his way to the pigeon coop near his house. Was he really dealing with thieves and courtesans on a regular basis? Ezio, at this point, needed some answers. Maybe this was what his father was talking about when they had things they needed to discuss. Whatever it was, Ezio would make sure he would find out about these thieves.

He reached the pigeon coop in less than seven minutes.

There was only one pigeon in it, one with a small slip of paper attached to it. Ezio pulled it off and thought about reading up but decided not to, not wanting to intrude on his father's business, as curious as it was.

Once he closed the cage door the pigeon coop, he climbed up to the top of the roof. As he turned to leave, he saw a handful of guards, maybe seven or eight, sprinting across the town square, where the gallows were.

Ezio watched them cross the square, wondering what they were up to and trying to discern their shouting…but he was too high up and too far away to catch any real words. Plus, there was just too much din from the city as it was.

He shrugged, thinking nothing of it, seeing that it was a common sight for them to be running around anyway. Ezio glanced at the sky, noticing that the day was waning to a close, for the sun was beginning to set.

Ezio wasn't quite sure how his day had gone by so quickly. He really didn't feel like he had done much at all. Maybe he had left Cristina's later than he thought.

By the time he made it back to the palazzo, the sun had set, though the sky was still lit up with light. Ezio, upon entering the courtyard, noticed that the front door was ajar. It was rarely left open, if ever.

"Father?" he called when he entered the house. No one answered him and he looked around. It was far too silent.

"Federico?" he tried again, hoping maybe his brother would answer him.

Again nothing.

He stepped towards the stairs when he heard soft movement behind him. Instinctively, he leaned back as an arm came flying in front of him, missing his head by a few inches.

It was the Auditore's live-in maid, Annetta. "Oh, messare Ezio," she said with relief. "Thank god."

"What happened?" he asked, seeing fear in her dark eyes. "Where is everyone?"

She shook her head, on the verge of the tears. "They took your father! And brothers…" she choked out. "They took them to the Palazzo della Signoria. _To prison!"_

Ezio was caught off guard by this news; he didn't even know what to think.

"My mother?" he demanded abruptly. "My sister?"

"Ezio!" said Claudia's voice on his left before Annetta could answer him. Ezio looked over and saw her come out from her hiding place, her face holding a frightened expression. A small wave of relief washed over him as he quickly embraced her, thankful she was okay.

"Claudia…are you alright?" he asked urgently.

"Yes, but mother…" trailed off Claudia, turning to show Ezio their mother. Maria Auditore was sitting in a chair, her dark eyes glazed over. She didn't look at Ezio…it was like she wasn't alive. "She's in shock."

Ezio had to remain level headed, though inside he was heavy turmoil. The women needed him though, they needed him to be calm when they themselves were not. After what he had seen today, after all the questions he had…this was only adding to his confusion.

His family was clearly in trouble.

"They…" began Annetta, looking down at the floor. "When she resisted…"

Annetta couldn't bring herself to finish the story but Ezio didn't push her. "It is not safe here," he said. "Is there some place you can take them?"

"Yes," said Annetta automatically. "Yes! To my sisters."

"Good, do that," he replied as Claudia went to embrace Annetta gratefully. "In the meantime, I'll go see my father."

"Be careful, Ezio," warned Claudia, looking a little fearful.

Annetta agreed. "Messare Ezio," she said, "the guards were looking for you as well."

Ezio nodded and hurried out of the palazzo, darkness having enveloped Firenze. He was incredibly worried…not just for his mother and sister…but the fate of his father and his beloved brothers.


	5. The Lost

**I don't own anything from the Assassin's Creed franchise. All Credits to Ubisoft and any others.**

**Hi hi hi hi. Okay, first off, I'd like to apologize for last chapter. I understand that it is a retelling Ezio's life before he was an assassin but I just wanted to point out that I did that because I didn't want to jump right into the plot necessarily. Even though we all know Ezio's character, I still felt it necessary to build him up and get to know him on a personal level from character to reader. I know it was a lot but that's the type of the story this is. It's going to follow Ezio's life from the game, with a few adjusted parts and events of my own. **

**Anyways, enough talking. Please enjoy this chapter and don't forget to review (pwease). ^_^ I love feedback and ways to improve my writing.**

Chapter Four: The Lost_  
><em>

_I was never one to cry…but I felt tears streak my cheeks. _

_"Promise me, Trinity!"_

_ "I promise, father," I choked out through my unshed tears._

_We both knew what this meant…but I didn't want to accept it. This wasn't supposed to happen…not like this. I could see that there were tears brimming his eyes too…because he knew what was to come for him._

_"Go, Trinity!" he said, pushing me into the secret passageway that led to outside the house. There were voices shouting from down the hall, voices that made me go cold. They were trying to break down the door and push aside our blockade._

_"Father, please!" I begged him, pulling on his hand towards me. As quickly as could without seeming angry, he shoved me away. I knew he wouldn't come with me; he was trying to buy me time. _

_The secret door slid to a close and the last thing I saw of my father was fending off eight or so guards. By their clothes, I knew they were not Venetian guards…so they must actually be mercenaries or the like to someone who paid them. I could here the shouting through the wall. I attempted to pry it open from this side and in the dark…but it was hopeless. There was no way to open it from the inside._

_There was ringing of metal and shouts, and I continued to listen. There was an enormous crash, one that I knew that someone was disarmed._

_"Take him outside with the others," a voice said. There was movement in the room, and then it went quiet._

_After a moment, I forced myself to move forward, lighting a torch to see in the dark passageway._

_I don't know what happened..._

_It was late at night when my father shook me awake and forced me to get dressed into my assassin robes and gave me a sword. I was confused at the time, but I knew something was very wrong. Downstairs, there was a lot of shouting and I could distinctly here my brothers in the din._

_When we exited my room, we met a few guards. It was clear that they only wanted to capture us, not kill us, but my father would not have it. We fended off a good amount of guards as he dragged me to his office, the one with the secret passage. We quickly barricaded the door with his desk and chair._

_"Father, what's happening?" I had asked urgently to him. "Why are the guards…?"_

_My father kissed me on the forehead before I could continue, his blue eyes dark with sorrow._

_He told me there wasn't much time…and he wanted me to get to Giovanni Auditore in Firenze as fast I could to warn him of an coming conspiracy, one that would lead to the Auditore family's death. I didn't understand what my father was saying but he shoved an envelope into my hands._

_"They know I know," he had whispered urgently. "You must save them, Trinity."_

_I kept inquiring about what he was talking about but he said no more of the topic as he pushed more furniture against the door._

_"I love you, my sweet daughter," he told me, cupping my face with hands. "Finish my quest. Find the Apple for the Templars do."_

_"No, father…." I didn't want him to give up on me, on himself. "Come with me!"_

_He shook his head quickly as the beating on the door began to intensify. My father then slid the secret door open for me. _

_"You must find it!" he said, handing me an unlit torch. I refused to move. "Trinity! You _must_ do this for me! Promise me!"_

_…Once I made it out of the passageway, I dropped the torch into the Venezia waters. The exit had led me to the top of the roof of our palazzo, out of a secret exit. The moon was shining brightly down on Venezia, so it would give me enough light to see. I heard a man shouting in the courtyard and I couldn't help but go into a crouch and peek over._

_My whole family…they were on their knees before dozens of guards, all at sword point. There was also a man…he was heavier set, even from this distance. He wore dark brown robes and his hood was up, shadowing his face. The way he was speaking…he was clearly from some other country. He wore clothes of nobility and high rank, despite the almost ragged cloak he had._

_"Where is she, dammit!" he demanded to my father, frustrated._

_No one answered him and he immediately punched my father in the face. Rage boiled inside of me but I remained hidden._

_"Che va in culo a sua madre!" hissed one of my brothers. (Motherfucker)_

_My father, slowly looked back up at the man again, unfazed._

_"Tell me where that wretch is!" he ordered my family. Again, no one made to speak, though I'm sure my little sisters were crying._

_After that silent moment, Dante spat at the man's feet and began to scream a string of profanity at him. Without hesitation, the man ran my eldest brother through with his sword. I had to cover my mouth to keep from screaming. _

_My mother and sisters now wailed uncontrollably. My mother attempted to hold Dante but the man shouted at her not to move or he'd kill my sisters._

_He paced in front of my father. "Where is she hiding, Giuliano?" he growled…but my father was mute. "I will have you all killed if you do not speak!"_

_I knew my sisters wouldn't know…and my father would never speak, despite the rest of his family and his life on the line. Valente would die for me…I know he would. My mother? If she did know, she wouldn't say anything…_

_They were entrusting me with a great mission, one I cannot fail._

_With no one saying anything…the man was fed up. "Kill the rest."_

_My mother pleaded with him, to spare my sisters…but in unison, the guards all ran their swords through my family, killing them al. They all slumped to the floor beside Dante…and blood began to pool around them._

_My heart couldn't possibly shatter anymore than it had and I couldn't move. Even I _could _defeat all those guards single-handedly, I couldn't find myself to move._

_"I will ask you one more time, Giuliano…" said the hooded man. My father, whose face I could not see, didn't reply immediately. Did he really think my father would say anything now? He had nothing else he had to live for?_

_ There was a gust of wind that picked up and it caused the man in brown's hood to blow back. Immediately, through my tears, I committed this face to memory._

_…so I would always remember the face of the person who murdered my family._

_"Promise me…" my father said quietly, barely loud enough to hear._

_"What?" snapped the man, confused._

_My father lifted his head higher. "Promise me."_

_It was clear that the man was growing enraged at what my father was saying…as if he was mocking him…but I knew that my father was speaking to me._

_"I've had enough your nonsense!" shouted the man in brown robes, and he quickly stabbed my father through the heart. _

* * *

><p>Trinity gasped as she sat up in her bed, wrenching out her dagger from under her pillow. She was breathing heavily, as if she had been running for miles. She looked around, no one in the bedroom.<p>

It was sunrise…and she didn't get much sleep.

She lowered her dagger and stared at the sheets. A small tear fell across her cheek, dropping her eyes.

"I promise, father…" she whispered to the silence.

Trinity inhaled deeply after a few minutes had passed, refocusing herself as she got out of bed to get dressed.

She hadn't been able to sleep really since nearly three days ago. Three days ago…she had a hard time getting out of Venezia. She was the most wanted person in the city but getting past the guards hadn't been the tricky part…

It was trying to get onto a boat to Forlí without getting caught. Trinity had to wait for a suitable ship for a little over half a day, causing her to lose precious time but she managed to sneak onto a trading ship making a stop in Venice before going on its way.

The boat trip took about a day's time, and as much as she wanted to sleep on the boat, she found herself afraid to…not wanting to dream of her family's deaths like she just had.

Once it passed Forlí, she had leapt off the boat and into the water, since the boat was not stopping at the port. Trinity was able to get a horse and ride her way through the mountains, into Tuscany, and to the Auditore Villa, which took another half day.

Trinity demanded an immediate meeting with Mario Auditore, despite it being late into the night. She received his audience without delay and quickly explained what had transpired in Venezia. Mario understood and offered her a fresh horse, rest, and food. Originally, she had declined the food and rest…but before she could finish telling Mario that she would return, hopefully with the rest of the Auditore family safely, she passed out from exhaustion on her horse, having not slept or eaten for some time.

Trinity presently strapped her belt on, the one that held her sword, her two daggers, and a pouch for her throwing knives, and inhaled deeply once more. She turned to look at the window again, gauging the time.

She hoped Mario wasn't up yet, though somehow, she figured he would be. Trinity was happy that she had met him years ago…otherwise, she would have passed out on the side of the road with no means of safety.

Because her father had been in regular contact with Giovanni, as friends and assassin confidents, he naturally was on good terms with Giovanni's older brother, Mario. The elder Auditore was more brash and loud but that was understandable…since he held company with mercenaries, thieves, and courtesans more often than the soft-spoken banker.

Whenever the Aldinucci family would visit Firenze, they always stopped to visit Mario at the Auditore Villa in Monterriggioni.

Speaking of Monterriggioni, it was in a state of dire disrepair. Shops were closed, the streets were disgusting, and even the actual villa wasn't kept up like it use to be when she was younger. Trinity guessed it was because Mario, sole ruler of the Monterriggioni, was spending more time tending to war…as well as the Brotherhood.

Trinity exited her room and made her way quickly through the villa.

Within two minutes, Mario appeared in front of her. If she hadn't been accustomed to his grayed out eye, one he was partially blind in due to battle, she would have found his appearance unnerving.

He smiled warmly at her. "You cannot go until you had something to eat," he said firmly. Trinity opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off. "No, do not argue with me."

She exhaled heavily, knowing it was not her place to deny him, merely because he was her elder.

"Sí," she sighed. "But something light only, Mario. I must get to Giovanni."

He understood the compromise and brought her to the dining room. He had his servant run to the kitchen and within a few minutes, the servant was back with a platter of bread and cheeses, as well as some wine.

"Light enough for you?" he teased gently. Trinity smiled only slightly at him at sat down in the chair that Mario had pulled out for her.

"Grazie, Mario," she said, picking up a slice of bread. "Your generosity was not necessary."

"Of course it is, Trinity," he replied, also picking off the plate. "You are part of the Order; that guarantees my hospitality."

They were silent while they ate. Until she started to eat, she had not realized quite how starved she had been, as she finished the majority of the plate herself. Mario found it amusing but said nothing of it as she stood to a stand.

"I must be going," she said. "I am losing valuable time."

"Of course," said Mario. "Come, let us fetch a horse."

They made their way out the stables that were outside the city at a strong pace. Trinity remained silent, her mind on other things. Mario, though worried for the teenaged girl, did not press her of it, knowing full well she was still trying to cope with the loss of her family. In a way, it saddened him, because someone as young as her, one who has seen sixteen springs, should never have had to watch her family be killed in front of her.

Mario went up to the stable boy and said a few words while Trinity stood behind. After a moment, the stable boy brought out a chestnut mare to her.

"She is not very hardy," said the young boy, "but she is very swift."

Trinity felt a smile tug at the corner of her lips and he blushed, running back to his master. She quickly mounted and reined the horse around in the direction of Florence. She was about to kick the sides of the mare gently to get her into a trot but Mario touched her leg.

"Giuliano would not want you to mourn his death like this," he said, with the softest expression his intimidating face could muster. "He saved you to finish what he started. Your family fought and died for that purpose…do not let your sorrow pull you under and plague your mind with guilt over their deaths."

Trinity successfully beat back her tears, though they stung her eyes painfully.

"Grazie…" she replied sincerely. "I shall return with Giovanni and his family."

Mario nodded before he slapped the hindquarters of the mare to get her to a run. He watched as her figured disappeared out of sight before turning his gaze to the risen sun.

"Buona fortuna." _(Good luck.)_

* * *

><p>Trinity slipped off the back of her horse as it continued to run just as she reached the gate into Florence. A man, probably a worker of the stable outside the gate, grabbed the reins of her horse and Trinity absently handed him a few florins to keep her horse stabled.<p>

It had been two years since she last was in Florence. She had learned a lot in the past two years, a lot about the Order and about her father and Giovanni Auditore's search for the Apple of Eden. She hoped that by now, the Auditore boys were informed of their father's true occupation so she would not be expected to hide it from them.

Trinity pulled up the hood of her white robes to shadow her face as she entered the bustling city. The ride from Monterriggioni took a little over half a day's ride. It was probably a few hours past noon now but the sun still was relatively warm.

She had no time to navigate her way through the streets full of civilians so she immediately started climbing the nearest building. Like Venezia, the city dwellers were amazed by her display of skills as she easily scaled the windows and ledges before she pulled herself onto the roof.

There were no guards on the roofs of Florence, unlike Venezia. She found that strange but she ran quickly, glancing at the streets she passed to see if she recognized anything. At regular intervals, there would be a street too wide to leap onto the next roof, but there were strong, steel cables that connected each building that she could run across.

Sometimes, she would catch the eye of children, and they would find her displays of athleticism almost god-like.

Trinity found that endearing but did not dwell on it.

She found the familiar palazzo of the Auditores, having gone deep into the city to find it, after about ten minutes. If she had taken the streets, it would have taken her much longer to get here.

Trinity noticed four guards standing in front of the gate to the palazzo. This confused her, seeing that she didn't the Auditores were wealthy enough to have personal guards.

Once at street level, she approached them.

"I wish to speak to Giovanni Auditore," she said formally to them. She was surprised when they all laughed at this.

She narrowed her eyes. "What is so amusing?" she demanded.

"The Auditores are standing trial as we speak, girl," said one closest to her. "Though they are likely to be hanged."

_"What!" _she exclaimed. "Why? Where are they?"

The guard scoffed. "For treason," he spat at her. "In Piazza della Signoria."

Trinity immediately turned on her heel and sprinted down the street. She shoved past civilians who were in her way, knocking down a few women and a man in the process. She had no idea where Piazza della Signoria was but she figured it would be easy to find since it was holding trial to the Auditores. Many civilians would be there.

_I am too late…_she thought desperately. _If only I had not…_

She sprinted up a pile of crates that were stacked against a building and made her way up the roofs again. From here, she would able to see where the people have gathered for the trial.

Trinity, while holding onto the building, looked around her, making sure she had good footing on the wall.

She found the town square easily and quickly made her way towards it.

As she approached the high roofs surrounding the plaza, she noticed guards were standing watch.

"Merda _(shit)_," she hissed.

There was a lot of noise coming from the gathered civilians surrounding the gallows as she snuck up on one of the guards. She pulled out her dagger and drove it into his back twice before bringing him to the ground.

Trinity made sure there weren't any guards close enough to notice her, though they were focused on the trial, and she pushed the now dead archer into the street behind instead into the plaza for people to notice.

She returned her attention to the trial. There were far too many guards around the gallows for her to take on single-handedly. Trinity could see three figures standing at the gallows, nooses around their necks and their hands tied behind their backs.

It was Giovanni and two his sons. From the looks of it, Ezio was not down there and she vaguely wondered why he had not been captured. There was the executioner standing at the gallows, as well a man with a hat and blue robes that Trinity assumed was the Gonfaloniere of Florence.

Trinity could see no possible means to get to the gallows and cut them down without anyone noticing.

"Giovanni Auditore!" shouted the overseer of the trial over the noise of the people. "You and your accomplices stand accused of the crime of treason! Do you have any evidence to count of this crime?"

_"Yes!"_ spat Giovanni angrily. "The documents that were delivered to _you _last night!"

"I'm afraid I know nothing of these documents," said the Gonfaloniere.

"He's lying!" said a voice in the back of the crowd, close to where Trinity was standing. His voice went unnoticed, however, since no one paid attention to him. She squinted, noticing a hooded figure in white pushing his way through the crowd toward the scaffold.

The overseer paused, waiting for anyone to step forth, though it was clear he expected nothing. "In the absence of any compelling evidence to the contrary," he said, his voice ringing over the crowd's cheers, "I am bound to pronounce you _guilty."_

Trinity's mind raced. She didn't know what to do or how she would be able to stop this from happening.

"You and your collaborators are sentenced to _death!" _declared the overseer.

_"No!" _Trinity exclaimed desperately. Because of her cry, other archers, who had been so intent on the trial, noticed her standing on the roof near them.

Immediately, two of them converged onto her.

She dodged a sword quickly, shoving the archer off the roof to his death and turned quickly to the other archer while she heard Giovanni shouting from the gallows.

"You are a traitor, Uberto! And you are one of them!" he bellowed. "You may take our lives this day, but we will have yours in return. I swear it!"

Trinity ducked from a swing of the guard's sword and spun around, whipping out her dagger and slicing at his throat. He gasped, clutching his neck, before he fell off the roof.

She snapped her head around just as the executioner pulled the lever to drop the wood out from the Auditores' feet.

She was too late.

"FATHER!" screamed a voice, coming the figure that was in white in the crowd, dashing toward the gallows.

"Ezio…?" she whispered to herself.

"There!" shouted the man in blue, pointing at the man. "Grab the boy! He is one of them."

The crowd backed off around him and guards, some with a full set of armor surrounded the man in white. Trinity could not let him die and leapt off the building into a bale of hay below. Quickly, she climbed out and dashed towards the fray.

"I'll kill you for what you've done!" shouted Ezio, two guards having caught hold of him by his arms. He easily pushed them off him and drew his sword.

"Guards!" yelled the Gonfaloniere. "Arrest him!"

Ezio stood ready to take on one of the guards with a large battleaxe.

Trinity sprinted up from behind, the path having been cleared by the watching civilians. The two guards Ezio had freed himself from were standing behind Ezio, waiting for the brute guard to attack. She threw two throwing knives, both landing squarely in the necks of her targets, trying to get to Ezio as quick as she could.

"Uccidetelo _(kill him)_," the overseer ordered.

The brute guard swung his axe, easily disarming Ezio, and because of the momentum, was on the verge swinging again.

Trinity tackled Ezio to the ground to avoid the blow, rolling a few times. She swiftly stabbed her dagger deep into the brute guard's foot and pulled it out before she came to a stand.

The guard howled with pain, dropping his axe as he stumbled. At this, she saw more guards begin to converge onto her and Ezio.

"Run, idiota, run!" she shouted to Ezio, pushing him forward. He didn't hesitate and ran straight for the street in front of him.

The guards chased after them and civilians, in their shock, parted the way for her and Ezio.

"The roof, go!" ordered Trinity as she saw a few crates ahead of them. Ezio immediately climbed them and jumped onto a beam. Trinity easily tailed him, a little surprised with his free-running skills.

Ezio quickly pulled her up and they sprinted across the rooftops. They came across an archer stand on the roof, one where they would keep watch in.

"In there!" she said, pointing to it. Ezio leapt into the box, Trinity following after. She cut the ties that were holding the tan canvases up and they fell, covering them from sight.

Trinity immediately made a gesture for Ezio to be quiet before she peered through a slit between the wood and the canvas as a few guards passed by.

"Quickly!" one was shouting. "They went this way!"

Five pairs of feet ran by them as they sat motionless in their hiding spot. After a minute or so, Trinity finally exhaled heavily.

She turned to him. "Are you hurt?" she asked, noticing a healing cut across his lip that wasn't there two years ago.

"No," he replied, still recovering from the running. "Sto bene _(I'm fine)._ What are you doing here? How did you-?"

"I will explain later," she cut him off, peering outside again. "Let's go. It's clear."

She climbed out of the stand and so did Ezio.

"Where are your mother and sister?" asked Trinity, glancing at the sun for the time of day. "Are they safe…?"

Ezio nodded. "Yes, they're with Annetta's sister."

Trinity had no idea who Annetta was but didn't say so. She realized what Ezio was wearing after a second of thinking of what their next course of action was.

He was wearing his father's old assassin robes, ones very similar to hers.

"Come, we have to get your mother and sister out of the city," said Trinity, making her way across the roof.

"Wait," said Ezio, grabbing a hold of her upper arm. "My family…. They need to be buried."

She gaped at him. "What?" she exclaimed. "We do not have the time for that."

"No," he said firmly, his light eyes darkened with pain. "It has to be done."

Trinity could see he was adamant about it and there was nothing she could say to change his mind.

_Of course I'd be stuck with the irresponsible Auditore boy, _she thought irritably.

"Fine," she relented. "But we have to make it quick. Your mother and sister's safety is far more important."

He said he understood…but somehow, Trinity wasn't so sure.

* * *

><p>Darkness fell across Florence, giving Ezio and Trinity an advantage to hide from the guards. Although…with their outfits, they would still be easily recognizable.<p>

Trinity followed Ezio to a small plaza silently.

Earlier, he had tried to inquire why she was here again…but she told him it wasn't the right time to just speak of things.

Although it was dark, the moon was shining bright enough for it to be relatively easy to move about. There were still many people out at this time, not to either of their surprise. Twice, they had to hide from passing guards, who were actively looking for the both of them.

When they were in the plaza, Trinity noticed a young woman hurrying over to them. She was dressed as Florentine nobility, her dress rather intricate in design. Trinity, having been train to always make note of detail, vital or not, realized the woman was quite pretty as she drew closer.

She had dark brown hair pulled up into a messy bun and pretty light brown eyes. Her facial features were well proportioned, with full lips, a straight nose, a good forehead to chin ratio. The young woman was short, however; she was probably about three to four inches shorter than Trinity, who was only about four inches shorter than Ezio.

The young woman embraced Ezio tightly as he buried his face into her hair. Trinity averted her eyes away, feeling awkward…and envious.

She was not envious of her, no…that wasn't even close. No, Trinity was envious that Ezio had someone to turn to in his time of sorrow, someone who could empathize with him. Trinity…she had no time to mourn, no time to truly let the pain hit her.

"Thank you for coming, Cristina," he said quietly when he pulled away. She looked up at him, touching his cheek gently. Trinity could see the sincerity in her eyes that she was truly upset for Ezio.

"Of course, of course," she replied just as softly. "Tell me, what can I do?"

"My family's bodies…" Ezio said, lowering his eyes to the ground for a moment. He collected his emotions before continuing. "I can't just leave them hanging from the gallows. I need to give their last rite, and lead them on to the next world…."

The woman, who Trinity understood her name was Cristina, nodded sadly. "All right," she replied. "Lead the way, Ezio."

Cristina glanced at Trinity, who had stood a few feet behind Ezio silently. Trinity immediately lowered her head in respect to her with a hand at her heart but said nothing, not interested in idle chitchat.

Ezio saw Cristina's confused look, especially because she noticed that both Ezio and Trinity were dressed so similarly, and clarified for her as they walked quickly. "Trinity is an old family friend."

"I see…"

He led the two woman back to Piazza della Signoria, which wasn't far from where they met Cristina.

They rounded the corner and Ezio stopped abruptly.

"What?" he gasped. "They've already been cut down!"

Cristina searched around the square. "What are we going to do?" she asked, glancing at him with concern.

Trinity squinted through the darkness, noticing a figure standing near the gallows. She didn't here was Ezio was saying but she stepped into the plaza.

"Hey," Ezio hissed, noticing Trinity leaving them, "where are you going?"

She ignored him and started to jog towards the dark figure across the way. She knew it was a guard, especially after he shouted for her to leave Piazza della Signoria.

When she ignored him, the guard ran after her, realizing it was one of the two criminals they were searching for. Trinity slowed to a stop as the guard sprinted right at her, going into a fighting stance.

The guard swung hard with his fist, but Trinity easily stepped aside and dodged it. With a twist of her body, she brought her leg around quickly, her heel nailing the guard in the head and sending him flying.

Cristina gasped at Trinity's display of defense, and Ezio was somewhat impressed.

Trinity drew her sword and approached the man on the ground, dizzy from the blow to the temple. She put the sword point at the guard's chest.

"Where are the bodies that were hanging here?" she demanded. He did not answer immediately. "Speak, before I cut out your tongue."

"They've already been taken," he said, cowering into the corner of the gallows. Ezio and Cristina ran up behind her.

"Where?" she said with a hard tone. "Tell us where they are."

"I don't know," he replied hesitantly. "I…I think they were taking them down to the river, to dump them."

"No…" said Ezio quietly.

Trinity sheathed her sword. "We must hurry."

Ezio did not reply as he was already running off across the plaza. Cristina took off after him, Trinity not much further behind. Ezio was sprinting so fast that both her and Cristina were beginning to fall behind and lose him to the crowd.

But before they completely lost sight of him, he stopped in front of a few crates, peering around them.

Trinity looked around the crates as well and saw the bodies of the Giovanni, Federico, and Petruccio laying near a wagon of hay. Near the wagon, there were four guards standing watch or awaiting orders, she didn't know.

"What are you going to do, Ezio?" asked Cristina in a whisper. Trinity couldn't help but roll her eyes, seeing that she had already asked a similar question about three minutes earlier.

He remained quiet for a moment. "…I'll have to kill them."

Cristina gasped behind Trinity. "No, don't do that!" she pleaded with him. "They did nothing wrong."

"They follow orders unquestioningly," he countered angrily. "That makes them-"

"Ezio!" she beseeched.

"Va bene," yielded Ezio. "I'll sneak behind their backs. I'll get my family, one at a time if I have to…and carry them down the river where those stairs are."

"Be careful!" Cristina said worriedly.

Trinity had just about enough of this girl. If he was going to have to sneak around them, they would just waste more time…time that Trinity wasn't willing to waste.

Ezio was busy telling Cristina to wait for him when Trinity stepped out from her cover to approach the guard.

The guards saw her almost immediately and drew their swords. The had been at the trial earlier, so they recognized her instantly. Though her hood covered the majority of her face, they saw her smirk widely.

"You are not allowed back here," said one guard.

Swiftly, she threw two of her three remaining thrown daggers, one sticking into one guard's heart that had been speaking, and the second dagger lodged in the other guard's throat. Both cried out in pain before falling to the floor.

Trinity withdrew her twin daggers, ready to fight the last two. The two guards, one with a full beard, and the other with nothing, however, were wary to immediately come after her, so there was a standoff between her and them.

"Well, I don't have all night," she said with a dark laugh. "Or are you afraid a woman will best you?"

One of the guards was enraged with her words and swung at her. She parried the blow with her daggers and the other guard took this opportunity to lunge at her. The attempt to catch her off guard was feeble as she shoved back the guard with the beard and into the wall so she could dodged the lunge.

Because he missed the attack, most of his weight had been thrown forward so he couldn't recover quickly enough. Trinity kicked the sword out of his hand, and it clattered to the floor some feet away from him. She stabbed her dagger into the side of his neck and wrenched it out, ducking from another swing from the other guard.

"Nice try," she said with a sinister tone, landing a kick into his chest. He stumbled back and fell to the floor, where Trinity slammed both her daggers into his chest and pulled them out.

She turned to Cristina and Ezio behind her. Cristina's hands were covering her mouth in astonishment while Ezio stared at her blankly.

Trinity rolled her eyes, though not noticed by either of them. She half bowed, making a graceful gesture towards the lifeless Auditore bodies. "You may proceed," she said in dark, sarcastic tone.

Neither of them moved, and she made a noise of irritation. Trinity sheathed her daggers, after wiping them on one of the dying guards, and pulled out her thrown daggers to reuse them for later.

She went to pick up Petruccio's body, seeing that he was the only one she would be able to carry and hurried down the stairs that led to the river. At the docks, there were two small boats and oars and she placed Petruccio's body in on of them. She looked up when she saw Ezio coming down the stairs with Federico in his arms.

Seeing Federico this close…Trinity felt tears brim her eyes but she held them back, trying to push back all the memories of him, as idiotic as they were sometimes.

"Hurry, Ezio," she told him. "We do not have a lot of time."

Another two minutes passed and they were ready to go.

"Go in the other boat with Cristina," said Trinity, hoping to give them a little more time together. Besides, she didn't want to hear all the lovey-dovey talk.

Ezio gave her a grateful look and he helped Cristina into the other gondola.

They went down the river for some time, the moonlight guiding the way. Trinity could here the pair talking in the boat ahead of her and she did her best not to eavesdrop.

She let her eyes fall to the bodies she was ferrying down the river. Immediately, she began to cry silently. Heavy guilt weighed her heart…she had not been able to save Giovanni in time.

The elder Auditore had always been so kind to her. When Giovanni would come visit Venezia on business, he'd always bring her small trinkets and gifts. Giovanni was like a second father to her in some ways and she learned some of her skills from him.

But now…like her own family, he was gone…and so was Federico…and little Petruccio.

Poor Federico…he was still so young. He was supposed to have a long life ahead of him. He was supposed to join the Order…get married…lead his life.

Her thoughts were pulled away abruptly when she saw Ezio stopping his gondola beside another dock. Trinity looked up and saw the back of a large church…and behind it on the grounds were headstones for the cemetery the led all the way up to the river.

They silently set to work burying the bodies with some shovels they found leaning against the back of the church. Cristina was having a hard time digging so they let her bury Petruccio.

Ezio tried to remain as numb as he could when he put the first pile of dirt onto his father's body. He knew that Trinity and Cristina were struggling as well.

Forty minutes passed and they were finished.

"Ezio," said Trinity quietly. "We have to go…your mother and sister…"

He sighed through his nose. "Give me a moment."

Trinity glanced at Cristina, and understood. "Only a minute," she said firmly, though as sympathetic as she could sound. "We cannot afford anymore loss of time."

She moved away, making towards one of the boats.

"I'm leaving the city, Cristina," he said quietly to her. "Will you come with me?"

Trinity wasn't intentionally listening, but she turned her head abruptly toward the pair, slightly angry that he was suggesting taking her with them. Not that Trinity had any personal issue with this girl, but she would just be in the way…and useless.

Cristina began to cry as she gazed up at him. "I want to," she choked out. "But I can't. My family…I-"

She couldn't bring herself to finish. Ezio already knew that her answer would have been this and he wasn't hurt or surprised. His heart ached to know he was parting from her but there was nothing he could do.

He reached around his neck and pulled out his medallion that had his family's crest on it. With a gentle smile, he placed it around her.

"Take this," he said softly, gazing into her eyes. "So that we may always be together, my dear Cristina…"

"Ezio…" she whispered.

Trinity's eye twitched out of minor disgust and she turned away, not wanting to watch them kiss. She just didn't understand what women saw Ezio.

She stood waiting on the boat, her arms crossed as she stared up at the moon. After a moment, she heard Ezio making his way down the docks…thankfully without Cristina.

He climbed in and took the oar.

"You should have told her you loved her…" said Trinity in a low voice. Ezio did not say anything to this statement and did not meet her eyes.

_Arrivederci (good-bye)…_he thought sadly. This was not just a good-bye to his love…to his family…but this was also a good-bye to Florence.

It was a good-bye to his old life.


	6. Change of Plans

**I don't own anything from the Assassin's Creed franchise. All credits to Ubisoft and wherever else. :)**

**Hey guys, here is the next...long...installment of the story! I really hope you guys enjoy it. Umm, I don't have much to say for this but yeah! Pwease, if you feel so inclined, review it so I get some feedback on it and stuff. Also, you guys rock. **

Chapter Five: Change of Plans

Trinity and Ezio had run into Ezio's live-in servant, Annetta, when they were just outside the Auditore palazzo. She was relieved to see that Ezio was okay, having not heard from him all day, though she was saddened by the news of the Auditore deaths. She then offered to take them to Ezio's sister and mother. He refused to travel with Annetta, fearing he would put her in too much danger because he and Trinity were wanted fugitives. So instead, Annetta gave them directions to the house and they said they would meet her there.

They had spent most of the night hiding from guards and the like. Because of that, neither of them slept, not that they had a safe place to do that anyways.

"Not _that_ way, grullo," Trinity snapped, pulling on the back of Ezio's collar to stop him. They had been traveling along the roofs, having followed Annetta's route in a general manner. They had to be careful they didn't run into any archers guarding the roofs, though Trinity had already pushed one off and into the street to his death a little earlier.

Ezio pushed her hand off him forcefully, having enough of her calling him names, even minor ones. "Yes it is," he countered quickly. "Annetta said right, left, left, right, and at the end of the street, she'll be waiting by the door."

He couldn't tell what look she was giving him, since her hood shadowed her face and it was dark out. He, however, was giving her a hard gaze from beneath his own hood.

Trinity crossed her arms. "No," she replied in hard tone, "she said right, _right, _left, right and _near _the end of the street she'd be waiting…not _at _the end."

Ezio glowered underneath his hood and disagreed irritably.

Thus, they ended up spending the next six minutes arguing about who was right. Neither, both being incredibly stubborn, wanted to give in into the other, especially because of their past history with each other, having constantly been at each other's throats since children.

Trinity hadn't changed much in the last two years, Ezio realized. If anything, she was more obstinate than ever. It didn't matter what the situation was for him, it seemed, because she was still picking a fight with him, despite the fact that he just lost part of his family.

It wasn't that she was insensitive to his circumstances, but his insufferable pride was incredibly aggravating. She found him even more exasperating than before. That aside, her patience with anything, especially with him, was very thin. She hadn't much sleep, or anything to eat recently, and Ezio just being Ezio was instantly irritating her.

"I live here!" he cried. "I think I would know where I'm going!"

"Will you shut up?" she hissed angrily. "Or are you trying to get the entire Firenze guard on us?"

Ezio glanced around behind him to see if he had attracted any attention from the guards. There was one off in the distance, on a roof higher than theirs, but he was fairly sure that the archer's back was facing them. Behind Trinity, there were two other guards, further off; he assumed that they wouldn't bother them.

"I'm going this way," he said in a final tone. "You are more than welcome to follow me, I don't care."

With that, Ezio turned on his heel and practically strutted away. Trinity raised her hands and made a gesture with her hands as if she were going to strangle him. Her irritation with him was at an all time high as she followed after him.

_You are lucky, Ezio Auditore, that I have to get you to Mario alive and in one piece, _she thought darkly. She glared at the back of his head as they walked.

They ran into another guard, and Ezio disposed of him. Trinity would have done it herself, knowing it would have been a quicker endeavor but she let him do it…just to appease his over-inflated ego.

Of course, he had to show off with a somewhat flashy display of his masculinity. Trinity was neither impressed nor proud of him, and continued to walk along the roof without so much as a glance at him.

And needless to say, they were lost. They had wandered around for over ten minutes and finally, Ezio stopped to check the streets below them. She knew that he wouldn't have any pride to verbally say they were lost.

"Idiota!" growled Trinity. "We went the wrong way, just like I said."

Ezio let out an irritable noise and turned to her.

"It is not my fault that I did not remember what Annetta said!" shot Ezio crossly, clearly trying to defend his pride. "I don't know if you remember correctly, but I just watched my father and brothers _die _today! There is a lot weighing my mind-"

"Do _not_ make the mistake in thinking that you are the only one who lost their family, Ezio!" she shouted furiously. He blinked, shocked by what she was implying.

"My _entire _family was slaughtered in front of me…" she continued harshly. "I watched them all die…and I could do nothing to save them. And yet even after that, four days later, I'm here in Firenze, rescuing _your _ass! I'm _here, _trying to save the rest of your family and get you back to Monterriggioni. How dare you suggest that your pain is greater than mine?"

She fell silent, internally seething. Trinity had so much anger…so much hatred pent up from watching her family die…and this was the first time she had an out to let her feelings go on. Trinity had no intention of losing her temper with Ezio, especially after what they've both experienced…but he had been asking for it. The last thing she had wanted was to start a fight with him.

Trinity turned away from and went to peer over the roof to see the street. She knew Ezio would say nothing of her outburst, even if he felt guilty or not. She wasn't about to say sorry…and her knowledge of him was large enough to know that he wouldn't dare say it either.

She quickly slinked across the strong, steel cables connecting two buildings to each other over the wide street, Ezio following behind her. She hadn't cared if he would follow her or not; Trinity figured that one of them would find Annetta sooner or later.

Once they were across to the next building, they scanned the new street below them. Ezio looked around to check for more archers, but luckily none were around or close enough to bother them.

"There," Trinity said, pointing.

He followed her hand and saw her pointing to a young woman standing outside a two-story building with maroon drapes hanging from the windows.

She didn't voice it, but Trinity recognized this building from her past visits to Florence. She had been here a few times with her father, for various reasons.

"That's Annetta," he confirmed. Trinity nodded and they descended to the street. Once on the floor, Trinity held out her hand, keeping Ezio into the shadows as a group of guards having come around the corner and passed by, avoiding walking civilians. Once they were out of sight, Trinity and Ezio stepped into the light.

When Annetta saw them, she sighed with relief. "Come, come," she said, ushering them into the building.

She opened the door and a flood of light hit them. Once Ezio's eyes adjusted, he knew exactly where he was.

A courtesan building.

Courtesans were everywhere, some attending to men, others standing and talking to each other. They were all in the characteristic courtesan outfits in varying colors.

Both Trinity and Ezio lowered their hoods as they entered, and immediately, many of the courtesans all looked over at Ezio. Some giggled, others even blushed, and still other women made a few seductive comments and/or expressions to him.

Trinity glanced at him, seeing him take it all in with a wry smile; she was fairly sure he winked at one of them too. She scoffed, disgusted with him.

"This is your sister's?" he asked, surprised.

Annetta laughed lightly but didn't reply to his question. "Wait here," she told them as they were in the middle of the room.

She went upstairs to go find Claudia and Ezio's mother, leaving Ezio to take in the attention and Trinity to irritably glare at him.

He turned to her. "What?" he asked, remnants of a sly smile on his face.

She rolled her eyes. "I didn't know it was possible for your ego to expand anymore than it already has," Trinity said, her arms crossed.

Ezio chuckled at this.

After a moment, he realized that this was the first time he had seen her face all day, since she had kept it shadowed with her hood since she had rescued him. She was prettier than he remembered…her striking blue eyes pierced into his while her black, long bangs fell across her face. The last time he saw her, she still had younger looking face, one of a child…but now, she had a more mature looking face.

She definitely was attractive…he couldn't deny it anymore.

"So, are you going to tell me why you're here?" he asked, not dropping his somewhat seductive gaze. "Or am I going to have to pry it out of you?"

She backed away, sickened by the look. "This is neither the time or place for that discussion," she replied definitely. "And I am _not _the typical woman, Ezio Auditore, that falls for your sly smile and flirtatious gaze. You do not charm me in any way, shape, or form."

Trinity was sort of appalled with this behavior, actually. She knew he was a womanizer…she had known that from the month she spent with the Auditore the last time she was in Florence. But to have just said good-bye to someone he loved, that Cristina girl, and then to turn around and flirt with the women in the courtesan building, as well as her…well, it was just sickening…especially since his family was dead too. Seducing anyone should be the last thing on his mind.

He chuckled but did not look put out.

Ezio's attention turned to a woman, coming out from behind a corner. She was older than the rest of the woman in the building, but she was perhaps the most beautiful, alongside Trinity. She was wearing a dark red dress, one that was low in cut, showing off her womanly assets. She had a small cloth, much like a hood, but not one that covered her face like Ezio's or Trinity's, and small beads around her head.

"Trinity!" the woman said with a smile, though she was surprised. She reached out to embrace her. Trinity returned the look, wrapping her arms around the woman. "My, how you have grown into a beautiful young woman since I last saw you."

"It's only been two years," Trinity replied with a short laugh. "I have not changed much."

The woman shook her head, though she was still smiling at her. "Well, you have gotten taller," she offered. "You're taller than I am now…. To be honest, I am surprised to see you here in Firenze. Usually, I'd be informed about it a few weeks prior to your arrival…. But tell me, my dear, how is your family? Your father has not written me in quite some time."

Trinity opened her mouth to reply but found the words caught within her throat. She automatically lowered her eyes, trying to hold back the rush of tears at the mention of her father. She pulled herself together easily enough, having been able to block out the visions from her mind for now.

Ezio, though he could only see the fall of Trinity's dark hair, could see the older woman look guilt ridden at the realization as to why Trinity had not answered her.

"They were…murdered…four days ago. No one survived," Trinity whispered. "My father helped me escape."

"My child," the woman in maroon whispered, taking Trinity's face into her hands. "Mi dispiace tanto _(I am so sorry). _I had no idea…. If there is anything I can do…"

Trinity attempted to smile at her. "Va tutto bene _(It's okay.) _There is nothing that can be done for them now. Only, I must finish what my father started…"

Ezio, being relatively confused as to what they were talking about and how Trinity knew this woman, cleared his throat to gain their attention. The two women turned to look at him, having forgotten he was there.

"How do you happen to know her?" asked Ezio to Trinity. His tone was leaning toward demanding.

Trinity decidedly ignored the tone and smirked. "You think your family was the only reason why we came to Firenze?" she replied, almost condescendingly. "My father had many dealings with people here."

Ezio narrowed her eyes but wasn't able to snap a reply back at her because the woman approached him. He looked at her, eyeing appreciatively, despite that she was older than him. At this, Trinity looked at him askance.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, messare Ezio," the woman said, noticeably looking him head to toe, as if sizing him up. "Annetta speaks quite highly of you…. I can see why."

Trinity snorted quietly to herself behind the woman, and though Ezio saw her incredulous face, he paid no attention to her. He obviously was pleased with himself with the way he was half smirking at the woman.

"I appreciate your kind words, madonna _(madam)_…?" he said.

"Ti prego _(please),_ call me Paola," she replied.

Ezio lowered his head in respect to her. "Thank you for offering your home to my family, Paola," he said sincerely.

She smiled gently at him. "It was the least I could do," she said, before glancing back at Trinity. "You both must be exhausted. Perhaps you would like to-"

"No, grazie," he cut in, turning away from the two women. "I can't stay."

"Why?" asked Paola, confused. "Where are you going?"

He paused in his stride. "To kill Uberto Alberti."

"Wait, _what?"_ Trinity snapped, taken aback by the statement. She had thought they had agreed on something else. "I was under the impression that we were going to get your family out of Firenze, not gallivant around, chasing the Gonfaloniere!"

Ezio turned to her, his eyes dark. "You think I would just let the man who killed my family live after what he has done?" he asked as he stepped back towards her. His hard glare did not intimidate her as she returned the look.

She wanted to tell him that she let the man who slaughtered her family walk away unscathed…because she had more pressing matter to deal with. However, she had no intention of letting him live his life without paying the price eventually for the pain he caused her. Trinity only assumed Ezio understood that.

"Why is your family's safety lack importance to you?" she asked, crossing her arms. "I thought I made it clear to you that I have to get you out of Firenze and back to your uncle in Monterrigioni?"

Ezio's nose flared as he tried to keep his temper in check. "My uncle will have to wait…because I will not allow Uberto Alberti to live. He will pay for what he has done."

They both stared each other down, angry with the other's differing desire. Before Trinity could reply, Paola stepped in. "I understand your desire for vengeance, Ezio," she said gently. "But the Gonfaloniere is a powerful man. You are no killer-"

"Spare me the lecture," he snapped, turning away from them again.

"-but I can make you one," Paola finished, smiling at his back. Trinity rolled her eyes, unbeknownst to either of them. She felt he would need a lot of work to become anything worthy enough to be called assassin.

"And why are you going to teach me how to kill?" he asked warily, eyes narrowed.

Paola smirked at him. "I'm not. I'm going to teach you how to survive."

Trinity sighed. "He's going to need more work than you think, Paola," she jabbed under her breath. Paola glanced at her but ignored the comment.

"Come," she told Ezio as well as gesturing to Trinity to follow, who sighed heavily, not wanting to partake in what Paola was going to teach Ezio.

* * *

><p>"So, who is this Leonardo da Vinci?" asked Trinity behind Ezio as they walked through the streets of Firenze.<p>

Paola had spent the entire morning teaching Ezio the ways of the courtesans. She had Ezio learn to blend within crowds, being seen but unseen by the guards. Trinity had been asked to help him as well, seeing that she was skilled in blending already.

After that, Trinity was given the task by Paola to show Ezio how to pickpocket, a useful trick if Ezio was ever desperate for money. Ezio…the first few times, caused quite a bit of alarm for stealing but he was able to disappear quickly enough before he was caught.

Once Ezio was sufficient enough in blending, Paola told Ezio and Trinity to visit Leonardo da Vinci, someone Trinity was not familiar with to fix Ezio's father's broken blade and bracer.

Ezio had wanted to take the easy way, scaling the buildings and running along the roofs to avoid all the crowds of the morning. Trinity, however, insisted that he practice hiding amongst the crowds on the way there. It was slower…but he needed to perfect the art of blending.

"He's a painter," said Ezio quietly as they passed a group of guards standing near a scaffold. He grew slightly nervous, wondering how they didn't notice him or Trinity in a crowd of seven people, especially in the attire they were in.

Trinity tugged on her hood to lower it a little more to make sure the majority of her face was still shadowed.

"I don't understand what a painter can do for you and your broken blade…"

Ezio shrugged, just as confused as she was.

They continued to walk, making a good pace for themselves. Both were exhausted, since neither has slept yet…but they knew they had no time to rest. Knowing he was going to be able to kill Uberto Alberti kept enough adrenaline in Ezio's body to stay relatively awake.

"And what exactly did the Gonfaloniere do that has you seeking vengeance so ardently?" said Trinity after some time. "Other than sentence them to death. There seems more to it than that."

Ezio didn't reply immediately. "The night before the trial," he began, "I went to see my father in prison. My father told me to take some documents to Uberto Alberti because he was a close friend of my father's and he was obviously overseeing the trial. The documents, I can only assume, cleared my family's name but…at the trial…that bastardo betrayed us…"

Trinity couldn't find anything to say to the small anecdote and remained quiet.

"Left," said Ezio, breaking away from a group they were walking with to cut across the street. Trinity followed closely behind, glancing at another cluster of Firenze guards a ways down. They didn't see Ezio or Trinity, being far too lazy and intent on their conversation to notice them.

The guard was actively looking for her and Ezio now. There were posters everywhere of them…and some of the heralds were making speeches about the dangers of the new assassins in the town. It was making it increasingly difficult to get around in Firenze without being caught or possibly getting into a fight.

Ezio knocked on a door, one with a sign that showed a painter's workshop over it. He didn't bother to wait for someone to answer it and opened the door.

"Just barge right in, why don't you?" Trinity hissed stepping inside after him. Both pulled down their hoods as they continued further into the workshop.

Trinity and Ezio looked over and saw a figure hunched over a work desk with books and parchment strewn across the table. He had on a maroon cape on as well as the same colored beret over his long, light brown hair. From what Trinity could hear, he was also muttering incessantly to himself.

When he heard them shut the door and lock it, the figure turned. His bright blue eyes looked shocked at who he saw.

"Oh! Ezio Auditore!" he exclaimed, truly surprised but nonetheless thrilled. Trinity could not help but find herself smiling at this man, merely for his enthusiasm.

He had a cleanly kept goatee on his relatively attractive face. He was animated with his hands and facial expressions and instantly, Trinity could tell he was completely harmless…almost innocent, in a way.

"I…I didn't expect to see _you _again…" he admitted, approaching him eagerly. "What with all that's happened…"

Trinity glanced up at Ezio, who looked slightly uncomfortable.

"Ah!" said the man, putting a hand to his forehead in a bit of shame, who Trinity guessed was Leonardo da Vinci. "Where are my manners? Welcome back!"

He embraced Ezio tightly. Trinity hid her smile, seeing that Ezio was surprised with Leonardo's display of friendliness. Ezio, however, did embrace him for a short moment.

Once Leonardo pulled away, he turned to Trinity with a bright smile. "I'm sorry, I haven't met you yet," he said. "My name is Leonardo da Vinci."

Trinity put her hand to her chest and lowered her head respectfully at him. "Trinity Aldinucci," she replied courteously. "It's a pleasure to meet you, messare Leonardo."

"No, the pleasure is mine," he said, kissing both her cheeks. The gesture caught Trinity off guard. "And please, call me Leonardo."

He was definitely very welcoming and warm…Trinity liked that. She needed something to brighten her spirits…even if it's just a little.

Leonardo put his hands together and looked at Ezio pensively. "Now, how can I be of service?" he asked.

Ezio hesitated. "I was hoping you could repair something of mine."

"Of course!" he said enthusiastically. He walked over to his worktable. "Come, this way!"

Ezio and Trinity glanced at each other before following Leonardo across the room.

"Ah, che pasticcio_(oh, what a mess)_…. Tutto il santo che cerco_(I've spent the whole day looking for)…"_ Leonardo mumbled to himself, moving all his papers aside. "Let me clear a space."

Ezio eyed him curiously.

"All right. Let's see it," said Leonardo once he was finished. Ezio handed him the bracer and a small rolled up parchment that came with it. Leonardo laid it on the table and stood over it, looking pensive.

Trinity watched from behind Ezio, wondering what he was going to do. She remembered this blade…Giovanni had shown it to her a few years ago. Trinity had been impressed with it, wanting one of her own. Giovanni, however, told her that he did not know how to construct the blade…since it was handed down to him.

"Fascinating," said Leonardo meditatively. "I don't know, Ezio. Despite its age, the construction is rather advanced. I've never seen anything quite like it."

He stood up and looked at Ezio apologetically. "I'm afraid, there's not much I can do without the original plans…" he continued. "Mi dispiace."

Ezio looked disappointed but was understanding. He nodded before he reached out to pick up the bracer and scroll.

"Wait, wait, wait!" said Leonardo abruptly, practically slapping Ezio's hand away from the table. Trinity couldn't help but laugh under her breath at the stunned expression Ezio had on his face for being hit like that.

Leonardo was oblivious, however, as he pulled open the scroll and stared at it for a long moment.

"What are you doing?" asked Ezio, a little irritated.

"The contents on this page are encrypted!" declared Leonardo. "But if my theory is correct…. Based on these sketches, it may very well…"

He faded off, enthralled with the parchment.

"It may very well what?" said Ezio, confused as to what he was going on about.

Leonardo waved him off dismissively. "Please, sit!" he told Ezio quickly.

"Leonardo-" Ezio began to implore but Leonardo shushed him. Trinity sort of snorted in amusement because Ezio clearly did not liked being told to shush.

Ezio rolled his eyes, giving up on trying to figure out what Leonardo was going on about and went to go take a seat in one of the few chairs in the room. He looked a bit miffed but he otherwise was surprisingly obedient to Leonardo's request.

Trinity did not feel like sitting down and instead, stepped closer to the worktable to look at what Leonardo was doing.

"Remarkable!" he said, rapt in his work. "If we transpose every letter…and select every third…"

Again, Leonardo faded off, unable to finish his sentence. Trinity found his near childlike enthusiasm rather endearing as she continued to watch him. After a moment of staring at the parchment, she realized exactly what this scroll was.

Ezio had a Codex page.

"Where did you get this?" said Trinity, turning to Ezio. He didn't reply immediately, slightly confused as to why she was using such a demanding tone.

"My father," he replied, eyeing her.

Trinity looked at him for another moment but didn't answer him.

"Why?" pressed Ezio.

She also waved him off dismissively, not wanting to go into the explanation here at the moment. "I'll explain later."

Ezio glowered at her, tired of hearing her say that…but didn't pursue the topic, merely for the fact that he was incredibly tired, now that he sat down.

For as long as Trinity could remember, her father had been searching for the phantom Codex pages. She knew that the Auditore family had been looking for them as well, knowing that they were written for the Order.

Trinity had to make sure that this page remained safe so she could get it back to Mario in Monterriggioni.

Leonardo spent a good few hours on decrypting the Codex page, occasionally muttering incoherent sentences to himself. Ezio, having been exhausted emotionally and physically, fell asleep in his chair. Trinity, however, had a lot on her mind, and therefore she spent the majority of her time pacing the room. She _was _tired, she wouldn't deny that. She was also hungry…and thankfully, Leonardo had offered her some bread and wine to hold her stomach until later.

Once he was finished with the Codex page, he set to work on the blade and bracer.

"Signorina Trinity?" said Leonardo abruptly. She looked up, having been leaning against the wall for some time now and smiled.

"Please," she replied with a gentle tone, "call me Trinity."

He smiled back for a moment and looked at the bracer. "I have extra materials here in my workshop," he continued. "I'm fairly confident I can make one of these for you as well, if you'd like."

Trinity's eyes lit up dramatically at this. She stood up and dropped her crossed arms, surprised by the offer. "That would be perfect," she said gratefully. "Grazie."

She offered her help but Leonardo politely declined. After another two and half hours had passed, Leonardo had created Trinity's blade and reconstructed Ezio's.

Leonardo had made minor adjustments to hers, since her forearm was much smaller than Ezio's, while he told her how the blade use to have to require the wearer to cut off their ring finger as a sign of commitment.

Trinity placed it over her right forearm, since that was her lead arm. She tested the blade, having it pop out of its place and contract again.

"Questo è genio _(This is genius),"_ whispered Trinity, admiring it. "Grazie mille, Leonardo!"

He looked pleased with himself as he went over to Ezio's sleeping figure.

"Ezio!" he said, shaking him awake. "It's finished!"

The young Auditore didn't stir for a long moment and Leonardo looked up at Trinity for what he should do. She exhaled irritably and went over to the pair. She told Leonardo to step aside before she promptly placed her foot on Ezio's upper arm, pushing him roughly off the chair.

Ezio jerked awake before he hit the ground, so he caught himself by throwing out his hands to the wooden floor.

He turned to glare at the obvious culprit. "What are you doing!" he snapped, getting up so he would be able to stand over her.

"Have a nice nap?" she asked, ignoring his question. She looked amused but Ezio could see an underlying darker look in her blue eyes.

"Puttana _(whore _or the equivalent to _bitch)_…" Ezio muttered under his breath. Trinity heard it but found it more amusing than offensive.

"Stronzo _(asshole),"_ she shot back.

"I finished it!" chimed in Leonardo as Ezio opened his mouth to insult her again. Ezio threw one last death glare at Trinity, having just about enough of her, and turned to Leonardo.

"What's finished?" he asked.

"The blade," clarified the painter. "I managed to decode that parchment of yours. It showed me exactly what to do!"

Ezio reached out for the bracer but Leonardo took a small step back and raised his other hand, one that was holding a large butcher's knife. Ezio eyed it uncertainly.

"Now all that's left is to remove your ring finger," finished Leonardo flatly.

"Really…?" replied Ezio, not looking very intrigued with the idea.

Trinity managed to keep her face impassive, though she was thoroughly amused with Ezio's expression.

"I'm sorry," said Leonardo apologetically, "but this is how it must be done. The blade is designed to ensure the 'commitment' of whoever is wielding it."

Ezio's face fell, thinking on it for a minute.

"Bene _(fine)_…" he conceded reluctantly. He went up to the worktable and placed his ring finger out on the surface. "Do it quickly."

He kept his eyes shut, waiting for Leonardo, who was smiling to himself. Trinity had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing at Ezio's gullibility.

Leonardo slammed the butcher's knife onto the table beside Ezio's finger, causing him to jump in surprise.

"I was only having fun, Ezio," said Leonardo good-naturedly. He placed a hand on Ezio's shoulder. "Though the blade once required a sacrifice, it's been modified. You can keep your finger."

Trinity finally let out a short laugh because Ezio looked almost hurt by the fact that Leonardo played a small joke on him. It was really a priceless face. Ezio, realizing that she was laughing at his expense, glared at her.

Leonardo handed him the bracer and Ezio put it on his left forearm, making sure it was tight. Once it was secure, Ezio flicked his wrist and the blade quickly slid out, extending far past his palm.

"Incredible," said Ezio, impressed.

"Yes it is," Leonardo agreed. "I made one for Trinity as well once I was sure enough that I could duplicate it."

Ezio glanced over at Trinity and she showed him the blade.

"Now tell me," continued Leonardo, "do you have other pages like this?"

"I'm sorry," replied Ezio, shaking his head. "Only the one."

Leonardo looked thoughtful before nodding. "Listen," he said, "if you do happen across another one of these, please, bring it to me."

"You have my word," promised Ezio, putting a hand at his heart. "And thank you for fixing this."

Before Leonardo could reply, someone pounded on the workshop door, which had been locked when Trinity and Ezio came in.

"By order of the Florentine guard!" a male's voice shouted. "Open this door!"

"Uh, just a moment!" called Leonardo, glancing at Trinity and Ezio. He dropped his voice to a low tone. "You two wait here."

He handed Ezio the Codex page and hurried towards the door. Trinity immediately turned to Ezio.

"You better not lose that," she whispered sternly, gesturing to the parchment while the door was being pounded away at. "It's imperative that we keep it safe."

Ezio eyed her as Leonardo approached the door and opened it. Trinity and Ezio moved out of the line of sight of the doorway so the guard wouldn't see them.

"Are you Leonardo da Vinci?" the guard demanded.

"Sí," he replied with an easy-going manner. "How may I be of service?"

"Follow me," the guard ordered roughly. "I need you to answer some questions."

"Certainly."

Leonardo tailed the guard out to the street, leaving Ezio and Trinity in his workshop. They glanced at each other, wordlessly agreeing to go follow them.

The guard had taken Leonardo into a small, walled-off courtyard beside the building, away from the crowds. Trinity crept up along the wall with Ezio behind her and they listened intently.

Darkness fell across Italy again, and in a passing thought, Ezio was surprised by how long he had been in Leonardo's workshop.

"What seems to be the trouble?" they heard Leonardo ask innocently.

"A witness claims to have seen you consorting with an enemy of the city," accused the guard. He sounded angry, as if he already believed the painter was.

"What?" exclaimed Leonardo. "Me? Consorting…? That's preposterous."

Ezio peered around the entryway to get a better view of the guard and Leonardo while Trinity silently climbed a wagon with a few crates on them to look over the wall covertly.

"When was the last time you saw or spoke with Ezio Auditore or his female accomplice?" snapped the guard, pushing Leonardo roughly. Leonardo looked generally unfazed with the small attack as he regained his footing.

"Who are you talking about?" replied the painter with a gesture meaning he was confused.

The guard made a noise of fury. "Non fare il finto tonto _(don't play dumb with me)!" _the Florentine guard shouted angrily, pointing his finger accusingly in Leonardo's face. "We know you were close with the family!"

Leonardo opened his mouth to insist that he was clueless of what the guard was going on about but the guard punched him dead in the face. Ezio felt some of his pent of up anger bubble up as Leonardo fell to the floor.

"Perhaps this will help to clear your head!"

The guard viciously kicked Leonardo in the stomach, to which he could not scramble away from. Leonardo was not a fighter, that much was clear.

"Ready to talk!" snapped the guard, landing another forceful kick in Leonardo's side, making him gasp for breath.

The guard grabbed a hold of the painter's collar and started punching away at his face. At this, Trinity leapt over the wall in a fit of rage, flicking her wrist so her hidden blade could spring forth.

Ezio, however, had beaten her, having run around the corner before her. The guard's back was turned so Ezio went up and quickly stabbed his hidden blade into the back of the guard's neck. He wasn't able to scream as Ezio wrenched the blade back out and let his victim fall to the floor.

"Bastardo…" spat Ezio at the dying guard.

Trinity hurried over and helped Leonardo up.

"Are you alright?" she asked once he was standing.

"Sí, sí," he replied, brushing himself off. "Grazie, Ezio."

"Sorry about that," said Ezio, putting a hand to Leonardo's shoulder.

The young painter shrugged. "Eh, I've grown accustomed to their abuses," he admitted, unconcerned.

The statement bothered Trinity greatly, especially since Leonardo was nothing but a kind man, willing to help them when he knew that they were wanted criminals.

"What of the body?" she asked, glancing at the guard who was twitching with agony as blood poured from his neck.

Leonardo thought for a moment. "Bring it inside and put it with the others."

Trinity and Ezio stared at him. _"Others?" _asked Ezio, shocked.

The painter chuckled. "The city gives some to me, for research," he explained. Ezio eyed Leonardo, not doubting him but Ezio was a little creeped out.

Ezio picked up the body, seeing that he was the strongest of the three and they followed Leonardo back to his workshop. Luckily, it was only around the corner, because Ezio wanted to avoid stares of any civilians as to why he was carrying a dead, bloody Florentine guard in his arms.

Leonardo pointed to a small room attached to the main one and Ezio saw a few other bodies, covered in linen. He quickly put the corpse down on the floor, hoping not too much blood had gotten on his clothes.

"See? Like it never happened," said Leonardo with a short laugh.

"Thank you, Leonardo…" said Ezio. "For everything."

Trinity agreed. "Yes, grazie, you are too kind."

Leonardo smiled at them. "Any time," he insisted, "and remember, if you find anymore of those strange pages, bring them to me. Should they contain new designs, I'll upgrade your blade as well."

"Of course," promised Ezio. "I will make sure of it."

"We really should be getting back to Paola," said Trinity to Ezio. It wasn't that their time was wasted…but two days has already gone by since she arrived in Florence.

Ezio nodded. "You're right," he said. "We should go."

"Send her my regards," said Leonardo. With that, Ezio and Trinity wished him a final farewell and they left the workshop.


	7. The First of Many

**All credits given to its rightful owners, such as Ubisoft. **

**Hai guys...haha sorry it took forever, but here is the next installment. It's a tad longer than the last chapters. Sorry. But yeaaah! Please enjoy it! Review it and I don't care if you flame or critisize. ITS ALL WELCOME! Last thing is...I didn't really re-edit this chapter too much so there are probably quite a few of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. I'm sorry!  
><strong>

Chapter Six: The First of Many

"You two were gone for quite a while…" Paola noted as Ezio and Trinity entered the courtesan building. Paola had been waiting for them to return, but she had not expected it to take as long as it did.

Trinity and Ezio had been gone the majority of the day before, after Ezio was taught how to blend, and they were gone the entire night. It was early morning now and Paola had been worried that Ezio and Trinity weren't getting enough sleep or that they had been captured.

"Leonardo likes to talk," Ezio replied, pulling down his hood and smiling at her. Trinity quickly smacked him upside the head and snorted indignantly.

"Like you would know," she said shortly, lowering her hood as well. "You were sleeping the whole time."

Ezio made to snap something back at her but Paola cut in before he could.

"Leonardo _does _like to talk," she agreed, approaching them. "But I trust you did more than just talk…?"

Both Trinity and Ezio flicked their wrists to let their hidden blades spring forth from the bracer. Paola's eyes widened slightly at the sight; she was more surprised that Trinity had been given a weapon as well.

Trinity noticed this and elaborated. "Leonardo was kind enough to offer to make me one as well," she explained. "That is partially why were gone for so long…we also had a hard time hiding from guards. They're searching quite actively for us."

"Yes, they have been rather forceful with some of my girls," said Paola. "You'll have to keep yourselves hidden well. A few guards saw you enter here yesterday and they questioned me personally. However, we were able to keep them away from your mother and sister, Ezio."

Trinity's face fell, not wanting to put unnecessary pressure or danger on Paola. "Mi dispaice _(I'm sorry)," _she said. "That is the last thing we wanted."

Paola waved her off dismissively, smiling wryly as well. "The girls were able to _distract _them from their original quest so there was really no issue," she replied. Trinity and Ezio understood what she meant by that and didn't question her further.

"But the blades are impressive," Paola admitted, stepping closer to Ezio.

Trinity couldn't help but eye the pair; she had noticed from the very beginning that Paola was quiet taken with Ezio, maybe not in a romantic way but Trinity noticed it nonetheless. If it was romantically…or sexually…she had quite a few years on her than he did, though Trinity hardly thought that this would matter to Ezio if the opportunity arose to bed with Paola.

Trinity couldn't help but gag silently to herself. Having been a visual person since she was a child, she inadvertently imagined Paola and Ezio engaging in sexual activities.

Maybe Trinity would always be perplexed by what women saw in him…because all she could see was a womanizing pervert with an enormous ego.

"Trinity and I have given you the skills," said Paola, gazing up at Ezio with almost sly eyes. She took his hand into hers and held it at his heart. "Leonardo's given you the blade…."

"All that remains is the deed," finished Trinity from beside them. She more so spoke up to make sure they remembered she was even there, since they were practically staring at each other at the moment.

Ezio nodded. "The Gonfaloniere will die by my hand and my hand only. I do not require your assistance," he said to Trinity. She laughed humorlessly and gave him a wry look.

"You think I am just going to let you run around Firenze alone?" she scoffed. "You can barely hold your own against a couple of guards, let alone several of them. I won't kill the Gonfaloniere but I am not about to let you run off without cover."

Having some sort of back up or partner would make it easier for him to escape, he realized. He begrudgingly agreed, seeing that he didn't think he was going to have much say. He knew Trinity was too stubborn to argue with about it anyways.

"Where can I find Uberto?" he asked Paola, who still had not yet released his hand.

"According to my girls, he'll be attending an unveiling tonight of Verrocchio's latest work," she replied informatively. "It will be held at the Santa Croce cloister."

She lowered Ezio's hand slowly as he put his other one at Paola's shoulder.

"Grazie, Paola," he said sincerely.

Before Ezio could turn to leave, Trinity spoke again. "I know you're eager to leave…but the unveiling isn't for another several hours," she said in a serious tone. "Unlike you, who slept at Leonardo's workshop, I haven't had much sleep within the last few days…or eaten for that matter."

"Do as you wish," growled Ezio, making towards the exit, "I'm leaving now."

She was blocking the door before he could blink. "And do what?" she shot darkly, her blue eyes shaded with irritation. "Make yourself an easy target? Without sleep or food, the possibility of losing consciousness is high."

Ezio had had enough of her stubbornness, though she made a very valid point.

"Look-" he started, finger raised.

"Trinity is right," interrupted Paola from behind him. At this statement, Ezio saw Trinity smirk triumphantly. "It would be prudent for you both to at least get a few hours rest…or at the very least, a good meal."

With both women tag teaming on him, Ezio had no choice. Some fifteen minutes later, he found himself sitting at a table with a nice display of food in front of him. He hadn't realized quite how hungry he was until the smells got to him. Needless to say, once the first bite was swallowed, he practically inhaled his meal.

Trinity refused to sit at the same table as him and took her plate elsewhere in the courtesan building. She had spent far too much time with him as it was already, and none of it was voluntary. Her frustration with him was clear; Ezio understandably was going through a rough time right now having just lost his family, but Trinity was in a near identical situation as well…and his appreciation was slim to none for saving his life at the execution. This bothered her greatly, as well as wasting time when she should be getting the remaining Auditores back to Monterriggioni.

Ezio had previously asked that his mother and sister were not informed that he was in the building; he still had not told them that neither his father nor two brothers made it out alive from the trial two days ago. He was unsure of how he was going to tell them, knowing the news would obviously not be taken well. So for now, he was putting it off until he had killed Uberto Alberti…though, he was sure that Claudia would be intuitive enough to know that her family was dead.

"What's wrong, my dear?" said a voice as Trinity sat down at the opposite side of the room on a red couch. "You look aggravated."

She looked up from her nearly empty plate of fruit, chicken, and bread to find Paola gazing at her with a concerned face. She turned her gaze away again, feeling slightly uncomfortable.

Paola had been a somewhat close friend with her father and Trinity had met her several times before now. She wouldn't say that she was close to Paola but she knew that Paola was taking it upon herself to become a little more motherly towards Trinity.

She sighed quietly, having no inclination to reply just yet. She could not help but roll her eyes as she watched some of the courtesans approach Ezio and start flirting with him.

"Out of all the people I could have been stuck with, I get _that_ idiota over there," she replied angrily. "He is brash, arrogant, and stupid. _And _he'll chase after any skirt that gives him the slightest bit of attention, despite having a 'love' already. He's despicable…_and_ he does not listen to advice, especially if it's in his favor or for his benefit. He constantly is picking fights with me…Ezio has not changed since we were children."

Paola chuckled at the young girl's fiery spirit as she watched Ezio easily flirt back with one of her girls. She decided to omit her comment about Trinity still being somewhat of a child, not wanting to goad the teenager. "If you want a man to listen to you, Trinity," Paola said in a smooth voice, "sometimes you have to-"

"Absolutely not," Trinity interrupted flatly. She already knew that Paola was going to say something about using sexuality as a means for control. Trinity never wanted to resort to something like that, not when she knew that she could find other ways to get Ezio to listen to her.

"-approach them at their level of intellect," Paola finished with a smile. Trinity blinked, now feeling awkward for her previous assumption.

The two women watched as Ezio stood up, excusing himself from the five or so courtesans that surrounded him. He approached Trinity and Paola with a determined expression. Trinity immediately interpreted this as, "I don't care what they say, I will do what I want."

She stood up after setting her cleared plate aside just as Ezio stopped. "Thank you for providing the meal. It wasn't necessary," he said before glancing at Trinity. "And I'm leaving now for the Santa Croce cloister. Are you joining me?"

Trinity outwardly was unfazed, but inside she was seething instantly.

"Ezio," said Paola gently while taking a step towards him so she would somewhat block the two of them, sensing Trinity's anger. "As we said before, you need to get some sleep. You will not perform well if you are not at least somewhat rested."

"I am fine."

"Stai zitto _(shut up)_," said Trinity in a callous tone, now at her wit's end with him. "There is no reason to leave now when the unveiling is hours away. Scouting out the area will be pointless until perhaps an hour to two hours beforehand because guards won't be posted until then. They wouldn't stand watch of the cloister all day long for an unveiling of art."

Ezio glowered at her. "Your superiority attitude is truly infuriating."

Trinity's eyes widened at the jab. _"My _superiority attitude?" she exclaimed, thoroughly offended. "Coming from the man who is an arrogant, chauvinistic pig that refuses to listen to anything I say."

He sort of smirked, though he was not entirely amused.

"I don't tell you these things because I want to hear myself speak, Ezio Auditore, but I tell you them because of experience and what makes sense."

Ezio scoffed, letting out an unconvinced laugh. "Do as you wish," he repeated dismissively as he turned on his heel. Trinity clenched her fists, beginning to despise this statement from him.

He walked away from the two women towards the door, the majority of the courtesans watching curiously at what was transpiring. Some started to whisper to one another, all either gazing at Ezio walking away, or looking at Trinity with doubtful expressions of her behavior. Trinity however, did not feel she was in the wrong, and therefore was aggravated with the woman all wordlessly accusing her of impropriety. She figured that they felt that she was behaving so rebelliously because she was still young.

This was one of the reasons why she hated women…and why she never was able to relate to her mother or sisters.

The courtesans were no different, in Trinity's eyes. Women saw everything at face value, and for them, Ezio was attractive. Therefore, having no sense of courtesy or general submission to him, since Trinity was female and Ezio was male, made Trinity look like the Devil in human form. Not even that, because she walked around in breeches, she was already seen as evil for indecency.

The thought was amusing, in a way. She would _never _be submissive to a man, especially Ezio. She was an assassin…passivity would get her nowhere in this world.

Women of this era did not question men, did not oppose men…basically did _nothing _against them. Trinity had always had every belief that she could generally do anything a man could, possibly even better, other than obvious things like tests of strength. She knew that women physically were not built as strong as her male counterparts so she wouldn't be naïve about that. Still, she could attest that she was stronger than the average woman due to her extensive training.

For the most part, Trinity surpassed her older brothers when it came to combat and stealth. She was far more agile than them, quicker too. Where she lacked in pure force and power, she made up for speed and dexterity.

That was something her father had always been proud of; the fact that she was female did not hinder her and out of sheer determination, she was able to overshadow her older brothers.

With all this in mind, as well as having to shadow Ezio on his ridiculous endeavors for the last few days, _and _adding her general lack of sleep and the loss of her family, Trinity, in all her pent up rage, quickly followed after Ezio as he made for the door. Without much thought because of her anger, she pulled out one of her twin daggers, causing quite a bit of alarm from those who were present in the building.

At the collective gasp, Ezio turned around to see what was wrong. In a flash of a moment, the last thing he saw was Trinity's impassive face somewhat close to his, though her eyes were dark with fury…just before she hit him across the head with the hilt of her dagger.

Ezio's dark eyes momentarily rolled back before he collapsed to the floor, unconscious but still breathing evenly. At this, all the courtesans went into a state of alarm.

"Trinity!" cried Paola, rushing over to Ezio's lifeless body that was blocking the front door. "What on earth was that for?"

She sheathed her dagger, ignoring the stares of disbelief or anger from the women of the room. "Men are brutes. Every single one of them," Trinity replied, unconcerned. "They only respond to food, sex, and violence…and generally in that order. Granted, some respond to reason…but not this one."

"That does not warrant an attack on him," snapped Paola, checking the site of where Trinity had hit him. "You could have killed him!"

"You said approach him at his level of intellect," Trinity said somewhat innocently. "Clearly, he is not highly intelligent, as it would have been prudent to take the advice I give him so freely to heart, so violence was the only way he would understand."

Paola did not say anything to Trinity but told one of her girls to get some cool water and had other girls help move Ezio to the nearest couch, seeing that he would be too heavy to carry to a bed upstairs.

Trinity sighed, not feeling at all remorseful as Paola threw her a stern look. "I didn't hit him that hard," she said defensively. "It's not like he can get any more stupid anyway."

"You're lucky he is not bleeding," huffed Paola once she and three other girls set Ezio's deadweight body on the couch. Trinity shrugged.

"He'll be fine," she assured Paola, turning towards the stairs. "This was the only way to get him to sleep…. Anyways, would you have someone wake me up in a few hours or if he wakes up?"

Though Paola was a little angry with the teenager, she didn't blame Trinity for the course of action she took. Ezio was obviously a handful…but so was Trinity. Both of them were without family now, so Paola felt a little more inclined to cut Trinity some slack. That aside, both of them were still very young…and now without parental guidance.

Paola sighed. "Of course, my dear," she replied, shaking her head as Trinity climbed the stairs. "Sleep well."

Trinity smiled wryly at her before disappearing upstairs.

* * *

><p>Trinity's eye twitched slightly, disturbed at the sight of Ezio still sleeping on the couch with several courtesans all giggling and whispering over him. Trinity didn't hear much of what they were saying but she did catch bits and pieces of them thinking Ezio was "cute" and "handsome."<p>

"He is too young for you," she snapped at them as she approached them.

The courtesans all jumped in surprise at her voice. They all quickly left Ezio's side, not wanting to be in Trinity's way and receive her wrath, despite the fact that Trinity was much younger than the majority of the women.

She was surprised how easily she was able to command authority over them, knowing full well that her age normally would not merit such fear or respect.

Trinity had a small vase of water in her hand and once she was near him, she immediately doused Ezio's face with it, causing him to wake up with a start.

He sputtered in his surprise. "Get up," said Trinity in a dark tone with an equally dark expression before she turned to walk away. "We have an hour before the unveiling, possibly less…"

Ezio looked around, angry confusion ensuing him. Of course, he was irritated that she had just dumped water on him but he didn't remember falling asleep, much less on the couch.

He sat up and a massive wave of pain came to the right side of his head. Ezio steadied himself and blinked, trying to shake off the haze that engulfed his brain and fogged his vision. He watched as what he thought was Trinity and Paola speaking quietly in a corner across the room while the other women all attended to some various customers or stood around talking amongst themselves.

Ezio tried to stand up but he found that to be difficult so he collapsed heavily back in the chair. He tried to remember what he did to his head for him to feel like this. As he touched the right side of his head, behind his temple, he felt a relatively large swollen bump that was painful to the touch.

"Are you alright?" said Trinity in a monotone, suddenly next to him. Ezio glanced at her but didn't want to admit to the fact that he was having trouble so he waved her off dismissively. She didn't look too concerned, despite her asking if he was feeling well.

"Sto bene _(I'm fine)_," he replied just as emotionlessly. "Just give me a few minutes."

"A few minutes is all we can afford," she said coldly, turning her back on him again. He glared at the back of her head, luckily his vision clearing now.

Again, he thought back to what he may have done to hurt himself. It took him a moment…but a flash of memory caught him.

"You hit me!" he exclaimed angrily, causing Trinity to pause in her walking.

She turned and he found her smiling, almost deviously, at him. Her blue eyes held a glint of mischief…and despite himself, he found this look incredibly attractive.

"It was for your own benefit," she replied simply though her lips formed into a wider smirk. Trinity pulled up her hood, shadowing her face before she turned away from him. "Hurry up."

Ezio eyed her before he stood up, feeling somewhat better. He really wanted to strangle that girl but he felt like couldn't do much about the fact that she hit him. Painful as it was to admit, she would put too much of a fight if he were to do something violent back.

He slowly approached Paola, who was waiting for him by the door that Trinity just exited. "Please watch over my mother and sister while I'm away," he said firmly to her

She smiled gently. "Of course, Ezio," she said, placing her hand at her heart to signify a promise. "As if they were my own."

He nodded, returning the smile before he also lifted up his hood.

Ezio found Trinity waiting at the opposite end of the relatively small street for him when he exited the courtesan building. Trinity had her arms folded across her chest, impatient and ready to scale the building to the roofs.

"You can lead the way…since I know not of where the Santa Croce cloister is," Trinity said once Ezio was within speaking distance. He nodded with understanding. "And watch for archers. They're posted everywhere because of us."

Ezio figured as much, though now it was going to cause a problem for them to move about the city, be it streets or roofs. Their notoriety was climbing steadily; more posters were hanging of them, more heralds were speaking out against their crimes (though some of the crimes the heralds spoke of were fabricated to make Ezio and Trinity appear more dangerous), and now, according to Paola, there were politicians…who were bearing false witness to them, as if they had seen Trinity or Ezio commit some of these crimes.

Because of all this, the guards, as if they weren't already, were continuously searching for them, if not more so because they've been warned that the assassins may strike at Verrocchios's unveiling because Uberto would be there.

_Well, at least they're smart, _sighed Trinity as she tailed Ezio across the roofs. They managed to slip past two, outrun four, and kill another three guards before they were at the perimeter of Santa Croce.

Ezio and Trinity stood over the large courtyard. On the left, a church of intricate design stood and the square was crawling with civilians, most of them wearing monks robes. There were plenty of guards circling the place, which was going to make this a little difficult.

Trinity pointed. "Two archers are posted on the building across the way," she noted for Ezio. "However, the unveiling is going to be within that walled off courtyard down there beside the church."

"So those archers won't be able to get to us in time or be able to reach us," concluded Ezio, understanding her point. Trinity half-heartedly agreed, because technically they _could, _if something went wrong.

"Don't doubt their aim," she warned him, watching the people below. "We should check the perimeter of the area of the unveiling. Perhaps there would be a weak point in their defenses…and to see how many guards they have stationed along the roof and entryways."

He did not have anything to say but only agreed.

"Knowing how city guards work," she continued thoughtfully, "they'll keep archers along the roofs and they'll either have two brute guards or a combination of four guards posted at the entry ways."

"Combination?" he asked before he could stop himself. Trinity exhaled sharply out of annoyance of having to explain herself. She understood that he had not been trained…_at all…_by his father in missions involving assassinations though. Well, he obviously wasn't given instruction on anything.

Trinity, grudgingly, put herself in check before speaking. "I can only assume that Firenze guards are similar to Venezia guards," she replied, turning to look at him directly. She didn't realize she would be giving him a teaching lesson right before an assassination. "There are seven types of guards that I know of. There are the brute guards, the ones with all the heavy armor and weaponry. They're strong so you _must_ watch out for them once they start swinging. Blocking them will do no good; their battleaxes and claymores will break through your defenses and send you flying. I have yet to _ever _see a Brute back down from a fight, so they only way to deal with them is to kill them or run. But, their weakness is that they're slow and generally unintelligent, at least in my past experience. Obviously the armor is heavy so they can't chase after you if you decide to flee…and there is no cowardice in running if you are outnumbered, Ezio. Don't be an idiot and think you can take on twenty guards at once, especially since you have very little to no skill at combat."

He gave her a dark look under his hood, though she didn't see it. She had somewhat of a point though, so he didn't argue. That aside, Trinity was providing insight freely and for once, he felt it would be good to listen to her.

"On the opposite end are the militia guards," she pressed on. "I'm fairly positive that these men only took on the occupation of being a guard to bring in money. They have very little skill in combat, and I've noticed that they are easily frightened. They tend to be the first ones to flee a fight. You can tell them apart because they wear little armor. Here in Firenze, I don't think they have armor. They're really quite useless, in my opinion, seeing that they aren't fast or skilled, and their morale is incredibly low if they're in a losing battle.

"And then you have the elite guards. It's easy to tell which is an elite because he wears more armor and uses a wider variety of weapons. I've been able to outrun them and they're not especially agile…though quite a few of them have chased me up to the rooftops in Venezia. However, like I said, they can be easily outrun. They're a little more courageous than the Militias but I've seen a few of them retreat.

"Then there are the Leaders. They where more armor than their Elite counterparts and they are stronger too. They can put up a good fight, Ezio, so be careful. They are Leaders for a reason; they're skilled in combat and don't give up on battles. Disarming them is a little difficult, like the Brutes. However, they're not very fast either, so outrunning them is not an issue. The Militia, Elite, and the Leader types make up the Standard guards. They're going to be the guards you see the most around any city, be it Firenze, Venezia, or Roma."

"You've been to Roma?" asked Ezio, surprised.

"_Focus, _Ezio!" Trinity snapped impatiently. She wanted to get this small training session done with so they could scout the unveiling perimeter since their time was drawing to a close. "Now, there are four types of special guards, the Brute being one of them. There is the Seeker guard…and right now, they're everywhere. I've only seen them a few times in Venezia, but here in Firenze, there isn't a street where I don't see at least two."

"They're the guards with the polearms, right?" asked Ezio, trying to sound a little more knowledgeable. Trinity nodded.

"Yes, and they use it to stab it into haystacks or wells to get us to come out of hiding. I swear, they're all paranoid because as their name implies, they are always seeking criminals out…and in this case, it's us. I've seen them look in any place we can hide, such as a haystack. They where a little more armor than a Leader guard but not as much as Brute…and they don't back off from fights very easily, I've noticed.

"Then you have the Agile guard. These bastardos are fast, sometimes even faster than me," Trinity growled, sounding angry with this. "They also will have no problem following you up buildings and tailing you across rooftops. Best way to handle them is to just kill them."

"But you said they're fast," cut in Ezio, confused. "Wouldn't that make dealing with them directly a problem?"

"Shut up," she replied with a hard tone. "Just listen to me, don't open up your mouth and talk."

Again, he threw her an unnoticed glare.

"They don't wear any armor…that's a reason why they're so fast. And they only carry small weapons like daggers or shortswords. Yes, because they are agile, they dodge attacks pretty well but…if you can counter-attack them, that's it, they're dead. They're weaker than even Militia guards, Ezio. They may be fast, but they're easy to kill if you deal with them right.

"And finally, the archers. Obviously, they have a long-ranged bow and short-ranged weapon, usually a sword. I've noticed that many of them have poor marksmanship skills though because they're arrows are usually slow. It's not hard to dodge their arrows. They don't wear much armor and they're probably the easiest to kill."

"Just push them off?"

He saw her smile slightly. "Exactly," she said. "And that is all you need to know about guards."

Ezio returned his gaze back to the large plaza below, wondering how she knew so much of this sort of thing. She still had explained nothing to him about her arbitrary appearance in Florence, though he deduced it had something to with his family. He had stopped asking her about it, however, since she kept refusing to tell him until they were in Monterriggioni. He would make sure to ask her when there because he was tired of being continuously overshadowed by her skills.

Still, Trinity's vast knowledge of combat, stealth, enemy strategies, profiling, and basic and advanced tactics, as well as her general athleticism, was astounding. All of that aside, he was curious as to how many people that she killed already, since her explanations of guards implied that she has fought enough to know…and since she was still alive to tell the tale, she must have killed _at least_ one of them.

"Anyways, we should get moving," Trinity said after a moment. "We don't have much time until the unveiling. The Gonfaloniere could show up at any moment."

"We'll be too easy to spot together," replied Ezio, wondering if their attire would give them away too quickly. Trinity glanced at him.

She sighed, more out of annoyance than helplessness. "You're right," she admitted. "We'll have to split up…"

Trinity trailed off, thinking quickly.

"Ezio, you head straight up this street, between the courtyard and the building with the two archers, and then make a left around the courtyard," she explained, pointing across the plaza. "I'll go around the back end of the church and see if there is any entryways and look for guards. We'll meet up around the back of the courtyard."

She turned to him and Ezio wondered if she was giving him a serious look from beneath the shadows of her hood. "Remember to blend with the crowd, Ezio," Trinity said with emphasis. "You will be surprised by how oblivious people are to you as long as you lay low and don't do anything to stand out. Keep a low profile…and _don't _run if a guard thinks he recognizes you. That's just going to confirm his beliefs. Understand?"

Ezio really did not like being told what to do like this from someone he could not stand, but he could not go against what she was saying when it made sense…especially if he were to do this on his own, he would have done everything from the top of his head.

"Yes."

"Also, something that Paola did not teach you," Trinity said, speaking a little more quickly. "Sitting down on a bench with other civilians is also blending. Guards rarely notice you because you're in such a low profile position. Which isn't to say that _none _of them won't notice…because they do, but it's not common."

He nodded, taking in all the information with out argument or attitude, which was surprising to Trinity. She hoped it was because he knew that she was only trying to help him exact vengeance and that he was now somewhat indebted to her.

"Let's move," he said, glancing at the positioning of the sun. "We're losing time."

Ezio peered below him to see if there was a wagon of leaves or a haystack…and conveniently, there was. Wordlessly, he leapt off the building, practically swan diving into the haystack.

Trinity rolled her eyes, not impressed…though she was pleased that she wouldn't have to teach him what her father had called the Leap of Faith. Ezio seemed to have mastered that already, thankfully.

Ezio climbed out of the haystack, unnoticed by anyone as he immediately placed himself into a group of six civilians that were walking past him. He glanced up at where he had been moments before, seeing Trinity's figure run across the roofs and away from him. As she ran, she dislodged some of the shingles from the roof. She was out of his line of sight rather quickly, so he returned his attention to where this group of people were walking too.

Guards were crawling throughout the plaza, most of them in groups of four or five. He would never admit to it, but without Trinity, and this being his first assassination, he was somewhat nervous of getting caught.

Ezio refocused himself. He _wouldn't _get caught…because he had to kill Uberto Alberti for the sake of his family.

He passed by a marble bench, a young woman and elder man sitting on the opposite ends of it. Ezio quickly broke away from the group he was following, since it was not going the direction he wanted, and dashed a few steps to the bench. He sat down as quick as he could, noticing a group of guards coming down the walkway to the church.

Ezio lowered his head, keeping his elbows at his knees. He wanted to look as relaxed as possible as they passed, hoping none of the guards would be smart enough to notice who he was.

The group of guards passed by slowly, one of them sharing a story about how his wife refuses to sleep with him so he usually forces her. The whole time, Ezio's heart pounded in his chest in anticipation…but once they were gone, he breathed easy again.

After about five or six minutes, he stood up and took his place between a small group of monks that were heading towards the courtyard. He didn't think he would have had to sit there for that long but no other group of civilians passed by him. He was a little worried that he would stand out though, because they were all wearing brown cloaks and he clearly was not.

Upon approaching the courtyard, he immediately noticed two archers posted on the roof above a small entryway into the unveiling and two Brute guards were blocking said entry. One of the Brutes was carrying a warhammer, and the other a large axe. Ezio tried not to stare for too long, though they didn't seem to detect his presence at all, despite that he was literally only four feet away from them.

Now he understood what Trinity meant by unintelligent.

As he had passed them, Ezio had a quick glance into the courtyard. There were pieces of art that he saw, as well as plenty of nobility already in there. He did not see Uberto, however.

The group of monks rounded the corner and Ezio noticed that there were no guards in sight. He saw Trinity leaning up against the outside wall halfway down the courtyard, her arms crossed, head down, and foot against the wall. She looked as if she had been waiting for quite some time.

Ezio pulled away from the group and made towards her, keeping an eye, despite her relaxed attitude, for any guards that weren't aware of.

"Well, you took your sweet time," Trinity jabbed while raising her head, but in a slightly more playful tone than in irritation. Ezio sort of chuckled.

"Sorry, there were a lot of guards to avoid."

She scoffed, mostly because he didn't sound very apologetic at all. "There is an entrance at the very end of this wall at the corner but is secured by two Militia guards. Easily dispatched…though it'll cause a scene," Trinity reported. "There are no entries along the walls in the back, as well as no guards or archers at the back end."

"There is an entryway in front around this corner," Ezio replied, pointing behind him. "Two archers on the roof, two Brute guards blocking the entry."

Trinity's face fell a little. "Unfortunately, we can't scale the courtyard wall and just drop in. It'll draw too much attention," she said, showing him. Ezio gazed down the entire length of the wall, not seeing any crevices or crates to climb. "So, the only way in is through the front."

"Or up…" said Ezio. Trinity turned around, her back having been facing him, and noticed his gaze was upward. She looked up to see what he was looking at.

She half-laughed. _How could I have missed that…?_

"Or up," she agreed.

There was a building that was across the way from the side of the courtyard that had a hoist on it and hanging over the street was a sturdy wooden platform. By means of the platform, they could easily jump the small gap to the roof of the courtyard.

"I'll kill the archers," she concluded.

Ezio turned to her, surprised. "What?"

"Civilians know not to go on the roofs," she explained quickly, making her way towards the rundown building with the hoist. "It's illegal…you should already know this, Ezio. No one ever pays attention to what is happening on the roofs."

Now that he thought of it, he was on the roofs quite often…and he never noticed anyone ever being aware of him up there.

He was starting to see that people were generally quite oblivious.

"Like I was saying before you cut me off," she continued, "I'll kill the archers on the roof to give you an easy escape. From the roof, I can keep an eye on all the guards within the area while you get into position to kill Uberto as well as cover you when you make your getaway."

"And how am I getting in?" Ezio asked, confused. Trinity smirked from beneath her hood. She turned her gaze to a group of courtesans off a little ways down the street trying to attract attention from anyone who would like their company.

"Use them," she said. "Tell them to distract the two Militia guards in the back entrance…. Once inside, you can make your move on Uberto. Remember, I'll be watching from the roof."

They went over the plan one more time through in slightly more detail before they broke off. Ezio went back around the front to wait for a sign of Uberto, blending in with a group of seven civilians standing around and chatting idly near the front entrance.

Meanwhile, Trinity scaled the building with the hoist and leapt lithely to the wooden platform. Once she was on the roof, she saw the open area of the courtyard for the unveiling of Verroccio's art. There was a large pile of crates that Ezio could easily climb up for his escape once he assassinated the Gonfaloniere.

Trinity turned her attention to the two archers who were at the front of the courtyard, backs facing her and watching the street below for anything suspicious.

She quickly hurried up behind the guard to the left, who was closest to her, clapping her hand over the guard's mouth as she stabbed her hidden blade into his neck. Warm blood gushed forth over her hand but it went unnoticed and he let out a muffled scream.

The other archer, having heard the noise, turned to see what was wrong, but Trinity was already lunging for him, quickly thrusting her blade into the man's neck as well so he would not be able to cry out.

She arranged the two bodies accordingly so that they wouldn't slide off the roof and into the courtyard or the street and attract attention. Trinity hoped that the blood they bled would not drip too far and cause alarm before Ezio would be able to make his kill.

Trinity stood up, holding one of the archer's bow and arrows to make it seem like she was an archer. She scanned the courtyard to check to see if anyone witnessed her killing two guards…but all the nobility seemed far too wrapped up in their idiotic affairs to notice anything of importance.

She turned to plaza and saw Ezio standing in the shadows, waiting. She only noticed him because she was looking for him…but she had to admit, she almost missed him.

Not that long of waiting, she saw their target. He was easy to discern in his teal robes and beret and he was with someone else, who was wearing intricate white robes. Trinity could only guess that this person was of high ranking in Florence. She glanced over at Ezio, who looked like he had every intention of running after Uberto on the spot but a group of guards tarried him as they passed by.

Trinity strained to hear Uberto and his partner's conversation as they approached the building, though it was hard with all the din from city noise.

"Again with this?" she heard Uberto say with heavy irritation.

"You have overstepped your bounds, Uberto," said the man in white, sounding angry as well.

The Gonfaloniere scoffed. "Who are you to speak of bounds?" he growled, casting a glare at his company. "You, who have crowned yourself Lorenzo de' Medici, Principe _(Prince)_ of Firenze."

Trinity's eyes widened slightly. _Lorenzo de' Medici…?_

She had heard her father and Giovanni mention Lorenzo plenty of times in the past, seeing that Lorenzo was an ally of theirs and has been for some time. She just had never met the man before.

"I have done no such thing!" defended Lorenzo.

"Of course not," Uberto said, unconvinced. "Ever innocent. How convenient…. At least now we see how far your reach extends, which is to say, nowhere at all! It has proved a valuable lesson for me and my allies."

"Yes," said Lorenzo as they moved closer to the front entry, sounding almost sinister "Your allies the Pazzi. Is that what this is about?"

"Be careful with your words, Lorenzo," snapped Uberto as they moved into the courtyard. "You might attract the wrong sort of attention."

With that, the two parted, greeting different groups of people within the unveiling. Trinity turned to Ezio, making a motion for him to start executing their plan. Ezio quickly made his way back to the side of the courtyard where the group of courtesans were.

After a minute of conversing with the four ladies and handing one of them a small pouch, they followed him to the back entrance of the unveiling. The two Militia guards were easily distracted with the courtesans, enamored with their seduction. The courtesans led them away from the unveiling and Ezio slipped inside inconspicuously.

It was ridiculous how easy it was to infiltrate the courtyard.

Trinity saw Ezio begin to weave his way between groups of people, though largely unnoticed by anyone…but he never took his gaze off of the Gonfaloniere.

"Good evening, Gonfaloniere," said a man with presumably his wife that Uberto had just approached.

"To you as well," Trinity heard Uberto reply pleasantly. "I trust you're enjoying yourselves?"

Trinity glanced at Ezio's progress. He had stopped in the shadows of the overhang and behind the crates, which was not far from Uberto's current position. She noted that there was only two guards within the courtyard, not including the four that were "supposedly" standing watch at the entrances.

"Indeed. It's a nice distraction from that nasty business with the Auditore family," said the man.

Uberto sighed. "And to think I once thought of Giovanni as…as a brother," he said, in mock sadness. Trinity snorted quietly to herself as she settled down into a crouch.

The man he was conversing with put a hand to Uberto's shoulder, looking sympathetic. "Don't blame yourself," said the man gently. "How could you have known what evils he planned?"

Trinity could see, even from this distance, that Ezio was growing furious but he refused to move.

_What the hell is he waiting for? He has a perfect opportunity to kill him, _she thought, watching him. She was confused…but this was his assassination…he could do what he wanted.

To a certain extent.

The man's wife spoke up. "I say we strike that traitor's name from the record books," she said scathingly. "Let history forget that he ever even existed."

Uberto's interest piqued at this. "Yes, I should look into that," he replied thoughtfully. "If you'll excuse me for a moment…"

And with that, Uberto walked away from the couple…but within two steps, someone else was after his attention.

"Uberto!" a woman's sweet voice called. She was somewhat closer to Trinity. "A moment of your time."

"Anything for you, Beatrice," said Uberto said kindly, going over to her and two other lady friends. The woman, Beatrice, giggled a little at Uberto's near flirtatious tone and Trinity was fairly certain the woman even snorted somewhere in the midst of that giggle, which inadvertently caused Trinity to suppress her own laugh of shock.

She knew she shouldn't be laughing at the moment but Trinity was just surprised the woman Beatrice snort-laughed.

To refocus herself, Trinity glanced at Ezio again…and he hadn't moved from his spot of hiding.

"So, tell us!" said Beatrice, clutching Uberto's sleeve. "How does it feel to be a hero?"

Trinity rolled her eyes.

"Please, I am no such thing," replied Uberto modestly and smiling. "As Gonfaloniere, it is my duty to insure that the city of Firenze remains a shining beacon of justice."

At that point, Trinity concluded that Uberto Alberti was just spewing out fancy words and phrases but held no meaning to what he was saying.

_A true politician, _she mused.

"Corruption and its ilk shall find no purchase here so long as I am in control," Uberto finished. Again, Trinity scoffed quietly to herself, amused by this man's brazen lies and indirect praises to himself.

"You are a treasure, Uberto," said Beatrice, smiling at him coyly. "I hope Lorenzo recognizes that."

Trinity saw his face darken. "Yes," he said with a tone of irritation. "Our great leader…Lorenzo. I'll see you ladies later."

It was clear the ladies were surprised by his abrupt mood change and leave but that didn't stop Uberto from parting from them. Trinity watched as he walked away and a pair of men caught him after he moved away.

"Ah! Uberto, there you are!" said one of them, as if surprised that he was there. "I was just telling the others about the execution."

"I mean no offense," said the other man apologetically, "but what if they did not act alone?"

Uberto laughed dryly. "You can rest easy, friends," he assured them. "I am confident that this treachery began _and _ended with the Auditore family."

"And…what of the other son?" asked the first man. "Ezio, was it?"

"The child poses no danger," said Uberto firmly. At this, Trinity truly wished she could laugh aloud without giving herself away. "Soft hands, and an even softer head. He'll be caught and executed before the week is out."

Trinity shook her head and checked on Ezio. He had moved to another shaded position where he was closer to Uberto but still hidden. She could see that the last conversation Uberto had was riling Ezio up.

She only assumed he was waiting to kill him to see if there was any information he could gather from Uberto on his family's wrongful execution…that seemed to be the only explanation as to why he was still waiting.

Though the longer he waited, the more likely his chance would slip away and he would get caught.

She returned her attention to Uberto and noticed the two men had left him but another couple was approaching him. She figured he was a popular man tonight, seeing that everyone thought he was some sort of savior.

"Evening to you, Gonfaloniere," said the woman.

"Is everything to your satisfaction?" Uberto asked once he half bowed.

The woman chuckled. "Do you even need to ask?" she replied. "Of course."

"Accept our thanks," said her husband with a grateful expression, "for this evening, and for helping to keep Firenze safe. I always had my doubts about the Auditore…. Where did the family even come from? To gain such wealth and…and prestige in just a single generation?"

"And the children…with the odd names," added the wife. "They're always making trouble."

"No surprise, given the company their father kept," continued the husband, rolling his eyes. "Whores and thieves, I swear it."

Uberto looked bored of the conversation but nodded. "Indeed," he replied. "It is clear now that he sought to undermine the city…to overturn all we've worked so hard to build!"

"But thanks to you, that's over," exclaimed the man, grinning at the Gonfaloniere.

Trinity sighed, growing bored.

She turned her gaze again to Ezio and was surprised to find him coming out from hiding now. She could only guess that he had had enough of what he was hearing and wanted to kill Uberto for all the lies he was spreading.

Uberto turned abruptly, having seen Ezio from the corner of his eye.

"You!" he cried, backing away as Ezio advanced with a threatening stride. At this, the nobility collectively gasped at the sight of Ezio, backing away with fear.

Trinity couldn't help but smile slightly; he did seem quite intimidating as he advanced on Uberto like a wild animal to his prey.

Ezio flicked his wrist, his hidden blade springing forth before he quickly reached out and stabbed the Gonfaloniere viciously.

That was Trinity's cue to rise to a stand and get ready to protect Ezio for his escape. Out of anger, Ezio had stabbed Uberto multiple times with an enormous amount of force. Uberto collapsed to the ground, Ezio kneeling beside the Gonfaloniere because it looked like he was about to speak.

"You would have done the same…" said Uberto, struggling to breathe, "to save the ones you love."

"Yes, I would," said Ezio, pure hatred dripping in his tone. "And I have…"

He rose up to a stand, the crowd of people hovering around him and the now dead Gonfaloniere. They were beginning to whisper and some women were wailing.

"The Auditore are not dead!" Ezio shouted, turning to glare at everyone. _"I'm _still here. _ME! _Ezio! Ezio Auditore!"

_Idiot!_ thought Trinity, her eyes frantically searching the mass of people for guards. _How could you give yourself away!_

"Assassino!" cried a woman from the crowd, which led to many more voices shouting the same statement.

The two Brute guards that had been standing watch were already pushing their way through the throng of nobility to get to Ezio and Trinity could see at least another five standard guards rushing into the courtyard.

She had no idea where they even came from but she had to get Ezio out of there; he was already surrounded by guards. Even from this height, she could see the adrenaline that was pumping through his veins, thinking he was ready for a fight.

Trinity knew he wouldn't be able to hold his own…not with two Brute guards in the mix.

She flicked her hidden blade out and leapt off the roof, landing on the shoulders of one of the standard guards. Trinity slammed her blade into the top of his head as the guard collapsed at her weight and wrenched it out as they hit the ground.

Trinity rolled to a stand beside Ezio, quickly withdrawing her sword.

"Run, Ezio!" she commanded. "Go!"

He had already taken out his sword, ready to fight the guards. "No, I'm-!"

"_Go!" _she shouted, pushing him towards the crates. "Don't stop running! Get out of here!"

Without thinking, he quickly climbed the crates she had shoved him to. When he pulled himself on the roof, he turned to see Trinity blocking the crates from the guards so they couldn't pursue him.

"Trinity, andiamo _(let's go)!" _he shouted to her, thinking she was going to follow him.

She glanced up and saw Ezio hesitating on whether or not he should flee or fight. _"Scappa! (Run!)" _Trinity yelled, parrying an attack from her right. "I'll keep them at bay! Just go!"

Ezio turned on his heel and sprinted across the roof, away from the courtyard. He wasn't so sure about leaving her behind…but she seemed to know what she was doing.

He hoped she would make it back alive.

* * *

><p><strong>Just wanted to say that I hope my OC doesn't come off as Mary Sue-ish. That's the LAST thing I want...the reason i say this is because Trinity is a skilled assassin, making her seem perfect. She's not! I can assure you all that Trinity and Deja aren't perfect humans. comparing them at the moment to EzioDesmond makes her seem too... "invincible" because of what she can do but they are just trained assassins when Ezio/Desmond aren't. I shouldn't HAVE to explain that but the problem with fanfics is that people assume quickly that these characters are mary sues... anyways. hope you liked the chapter! xoxo  
><strong>


	8. Midnight Fight

**All credits to Ubisoft and others where it is given. I own nothing.**

**Hi everyone! I was a little more timely with this update. :) Also, I was reading my story and what not and I realized that my computer automatically changed Federico to Frederico. I didn't even notice when I was editting because I wasn't paying attention. I'm really sorry about that but I went back and changed all of it to say Federico. oops.**

**Anyways, feel free to review! I like feedback to improve on my writing. :) It would be most appreciated but I still do appreciate all the reviews I already have as well as all the subscribers. xoxo ENJOY**

Chapter Seven: Midnight Fight

Ezio dropped down from the roof, now standing in front of the courtesan building. He glanced around him, wondering if Trinity would suddenly appear beside him.

She was nowhere to be found.

He decided to wait for a little bit to see if Trinity would turn up…otherwise, he may have to assume the worst. He went to lean himself up against the wall, constantly scanning the roofs above and either ends of the street to see a figure in white approaching. But he saw no one that remotely resembled Trinity.

Ezio lowered his eyes for a moment to the street floor, unsure of what course of action he should take. He felt a little bit of guilt rise in his throat for having abandoned Trinity with at least seven guards upon her, despite that she had told him to leave her behind. She had seemed like she knew what she was doing though.

He exhaled heavily and took one final glance up and down the street, but did not expect to see her. After a moment, Ezio moved away from the wall and opened the door to the building. Once he closed it, he removed his hood while going further into the room, looking for a familiar face among the women who were now gazing at him. He didn't bother to smile at some of the courtesans who were giggling quietly at him.

Paola had been waiting patiently for the return of the two teenagers and when she saw Ezio, she quickly stood up from her corner of the room and approached him.

He met her near her corner and wordlessly, she embraced him, proud that he was able to make the assassination. However, when she pulled away, she saw how solemn Ezio's expression was…and she noticed that Trinity was not present.

"Ezio…" said Paola slowly, glancing around him to see if maybe she had missed the teenaged girl enter the building. "Where is Trinity?"

Again, he lowered his eyes for a moment, uncertain of how he was going to explain what had happened.

But as he opened his mouth to reply, there was an enormous _bang! _behind him, causing the majority of the occupants of the room to jump slightly.

Ezio turned on the spot to find Trinity, hand still on the door and was slightly out of breath; she obviously had opened the door very forcefully in order to grab the room's attention. Both he and Paola were relieved to see that she was all right, though Ezio would never say that aloud.

He couldn't see what her expression was because her hood was shadowing her face but he had a distinct feeling that she was not happy by the vibes she was emanating. On her left upper arm, the fabric was torn and soaked in blood.

Trinity stepped through, slamming shut the door behind her.

Paola rushed over to her. "Trinity, are you all right?" she pressed, gently taking a hold of her injured arm. "You're bleeding. Let-"

The teen brushed Paola off, almost roughly, and pulled down her hood. Though her face was impassive, Ezio could see the anger or heavy irritation in Trinity's cerulean eyes.

"I'm fine," Trinity interjected as she walked towards Ezio. He started to take a step back but then stopped, not wanting to seem like he was afraid of her…though she was coming off as a little intimidating.

The moment she was within arm's reach, she quickly grabbed him by the collar with her uninjured arm and shoved him forcefully into the wall behind him. Ezio was surprised with the amount of strength she had in the movement for it caused him to exhale abruptly when his back hit the wall.

Paola discreetly rolled her eyes, no longer wanting to get involved with the pair's constant fighting, be it verbally for figuratively; even their bickering was beginning to take a toll on her. She figured it was best to let them fight it out.

The rest of the room, again, watched with great concentration on the scene. However, Trinity did not care if the whole world was watching at this point.

"_Never _announce yourself like that again," she spat. "If you are looking for a death warrant, I will _gladly_ throw you to the guards myself, Ezio Auditore, but if I _ever_ catch you screaming your name like that in the future, so help me God, I will cut off your testicles."

Ezio did not looked perturbed by her threatening him as she roughly released her hold of his collar.

Trinity was bluffing. She would never want to even come close to his groin region but she hoped that her very blunt threat would instill common sense into his brain.

"What did you do?" asked Paola to Ezio as Trinity walked away from him.

Trinity scoffed, not allowing Ezio to answer. "He started shouting, 'I'm Ezio Auditore! I am still alive! The Auditores aren't dead!' after he killed the Gonfaloniere. Half the damn city probably heard him, seeing he attracted at least six guards with his stupidity," she exclaimed, throwing up her hands. "And _then_ he thinks he could fight them. I had to yell at him just to get him to run."

Ezio glowered at her, wishing greatly to grab her by the throat. "I wanted Firenze to know that the Auditore line will never die-"

"It was about to end right then and there!" she retorted scathingly, ignoring the stares from the courtesans. "…You are lucky that in this situation, it hardly matters. They were out looking for us anyways and knew who we were…but in _any _other assassination, you _never _compromise yourself like that…_ever. _Do you understand me?_"_

Ezio made no move to reply, making Trinity narrow her eyes again.

"Va bene," interceded Paola with a slightly firm tone. "That's enough."

The two teenagers didn't argue with her but they both continued to throw nasty glares at each other.

"Now, let me take a look at your arm."

Trinity sighed, having no interest in being tended to…though the wound was beginning to throb painfully now. She knew that she could not defy Paola, especially when it was in her own interest, so Trinity started to pull off her raiment of weapons and placed them on the nearest table.

Ezio turned away, feeling the slightest bit awkward as she started to pull off the top portion of her clothes, bearing more skin than he had ever seen her bear in his life. A tan, sleeveless, thin shirt covered her torso but watching a person he despised undress was… slightly uncomfortable for him, even though she was attractive.

"I wonder how you bed any women when you can't even watch me strip halfway without growing embarrassed," she mocked, smirking at him. Trinity pulled off her last piece of clothing and set it down. She knew she shouldn't have said anything but could not resist and the taunt came out automatically.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he replied smoothly, turning back to her and folding his arms. "Clearly you've never been pleasured by a man before with how foul your attitude is all the time. If you had more of a sex life, you'd be much more pleasant to be around."

At this, some of the courtesans around him giggled at his comeback. Ezio returned her smirk, purposefully eyeing her. Trinity was only wearing her brown breeches, her leather, knee-high boots, and her shirt, leaving her open to view since all the fabric clung to her skin in every which direction.

Trinity looked as if she was going to kill him and she muttered a string of profanity under her breath, causing Paola to laugh.

Ezio was amused with how easy it was to infuriate her with this subject and decided to give her hell since she was giving it to him for the last few days. He immediately set about circling her like predator to helpless prey.

Trinity ignored this as a courtesan brought Paola a bowl of clean water with a small hand towel in it.

Paola quickly set about cleaning up the laceration, holding back her smile at the two bickering yet again. "You've stopped bleeding for the most part," she said after a moment. "It's not deep…though I do recommend letting this arm rest and heal before you hurt it further."

"Yes, yes, yes," said Trinity dismissively, irritated that Ezio was still slowly circling her and looking her up and down.

Paola had a long piece of fabric and wrapped Trinity's arm tightly to stem the rest of the flow of blood. Once she was finished, the teenaged assassin rounded on Ezio.

"Are you satisfied?" she growled.

Ezio stopped, his ever-prevalent smirk on his face while his arms were still crossed. He was about two feet from her, which was closer than she would have preferred.

He reached out with his hand and put a finger under her chin to lift her head up slightly. Trinity did not move, frozen with fury that he was even touching her…as well as aware of the audience she had.

"You know," he said, dropping his voice to a low whisper and leaning closer to her, "despite your pretty face…I would only let myself be in the same bed with you if you were to beg me."

Rage erupted within her chest and she struggled to remain emotionless and indifferent to his words. Ezio already knew that she would be angry…but he was enjoying the game.

Trinity pushed his hand viciously away from her face. "As if I would beg," she replied offhandedly, turning away and to her clothes on the table. "You're the last man on earth I would ever spread my legs for."

Ezio laughed dryly and dropped the subject because Paola was giving him a look of warning about not pushing Trinity too far.

_Despicable, _Trinity thought furiously and she let her mind run away with a slew of offensive names for him. She didn't understand how he could behave like this when he only just recently lost his father and brothers. To so easily forget that his family was gone and be able to flirt with her…or any woman, was ridiculous.

"I think it's best if we leave Firenze," said Ezio to Paola, changing the subject, while Trinity redressed herself.

At this statement, Trinity froze once more, her temper spiking.

"_Now _you want to leave?" she exclaimed, turning on the spot and glaring at him. "I'm glad everything depends on _your _decisions."

He smirked but ignored her.

"And where will you go?" asked Paola, also disregarding her comment, causing Trinity to groan in frustration.

"I'm taking him and his mother and sister back to Monterriggioni," snapped Trinity before Ezio could as she tightened her belt. "As I was trying to do this _three _days ago…. Ezio's uncle lives in the family's villa there."

Paola nodded in understanding and clapped her hands as she turned towards the stairway. Both Trinity and Ezio turned their gazes up there as well, finding Annetta leading Ezio's sister and mother down to them.

As the Auditore women approached Ezio, Paola stepped away to give them time to talk, since they haven't seen each other for some time.

"Ezio!" cried Claudia once she saw him at the bottom of the staircase. She ran up to him and wrapped her arms around her older brother. "Where have you been? They wouldn't let us leave…"

She released him as Annetta brought their mother to Ezio.

"And mother…ugh, she hasn't spoken a single word since we left the house," Claudia continued to babble, not noticing Trinity standing a few feet behind Ezio. "Father will need to sort things out."

Trinity noticed immediately that Ezio's disposition changed completely, having been sexually harassing her only a minute ago, to deep sadness as he embraced his mute mother for a long moment. It was clear that Claudia was clueless about what had happened.

Claudia's eyes fell upon Trinity finally.

"Trinity?" she said with surprise. "What are you doing here!"

She quickly hugged Trinity tightly around the neck, and though Trinity returned the embrace, she felt awkward, never having related well with Claudia. When they were children, the Auditore girl always thought that Trinity and her were close friends…but Trinity always failed to see that way.

"It's…a long story," replied Trinity once she stepped away from the Auditore sister. She hesitated before adding another statement. "I came to see your father."

At this, Claudia rounded back on Ezio. "Where is father anyway, Ezio?" she asked, looking about the room. Trinity lowered her eyes, feeling Ezio's unspoken unease. "And Federico…? And Petruccio?"

Ezio took a moment to speak, grief beginning to creep into his eyes. "Something's…happened…" he said finally, unsure of how to continue.

"What do you mean?"

Trinity could see that Claudia was still confused. "Claudia…" she said as gently as she could manage. "Your family…they…"

But even Trinity could not find the right words to try to relay the situation delicately.

Claudia understood why they were at a loss for words and her eyes widened in astonishment. "No!" she exclaimed, shaking her head. "No…it's impossible."

Ezio frowned. "Claudia…" he whispered, stepping towards her. His sister instinctively backed away, muttering "no" over and over again, trying to deny the idea of her brothers and father having been executed.

"I did everything I could, piccina _(little one)," _consoled her brother, holding her into a supporting embrace. Claudia began to weep uncontrollably.

Trinity looked away, feeling the same envy that she had felt about how Ezio at least had people he could run to in his time of grief…when she had no one.

It wasn't that Trinity didn't sympathize with their situation…because she did…but she hadn't even had the chance to deal with her own emotions and thoughts because she had been charged by her father to come rescue the Auditores.

Ezio let Claudia weep for a minute or so. "Listen," he finally said sternly, taking her by the shoulders, "right now, what matters is getting us all someplace safe. But to do that, I need you to stay focused."

Claudia was reduced to whimpering.

"Do you understand?" Ezio asked, a little more softly. His sister nodded, drying her eyes. "Good…please watch over mother for me."

Claudia nodded again, sniffing slightly, before she went to her mother and led her gently towards the door.

"Are we ready?" asked Trinity, making sure to keep her usual acid tone out of her voice whenever she spoke to Ezio. She may hate him…but she knew when to be respectful.

"Yes."

Paola approached Ezio and gave him a swift kiss on the cheek before she turned to Trinity, giving the young girl a long, warm embrace and a kiss on her forehead.

"Please stay safe, my dear," Paola whispered to her. "And stay strong. Your father wouldn't want you to lose sight of everything he has worked for."

Trinity lowered head respectfully as a response.

"Stay vigilant, Ezio," said Paola as she turned back to him. "I suspect the road ahead is yet long."

Ezio nodded, not quite understanding her cryptic talk but he did not comment on it. And with that, they said their final goodbyes and left the building. The street was still crowded with civilians as Trinity pulled them aside.

"We have to be quick," she said quietly to the Auditores. "The entire guard is out searching for Ezio and I…and I have no guarantee that we will not be caught. So please, _listen _to me when I give commands."

She asked them if they understood and they set out into the streets. Ezio and Trinity both separately blended in with the crowds of the city, Maria and Claudia following closely behind them. They would be unrecognizable and the guard was not out looking for them, so Trinity was not especially worried about the female Auditores.

They passed more than a handful of guards but thankfully, they did not notice the two assassins as they passed by.

Ezio just didn't understand how everyone could be so oblivious to him and Trinity. Even the civilians that walked the street could guess at who he was merely by his outfit, or at least, so he thought. The act of placing yourself within a group of individuals and therefore hiding in plain sight, still confused him immensely.

He was surprised with how little trouble they had making it to the gate out of the city. Ezio had figured they'd have to fight at least one group of guards…but nothing happened, other than heavy anticipation for the four of them.

As they rounded a corner, Trinity saw further down that eight guards were blocking the gate like a barricade, all of them standing in an arc in front of the exit. Trinity cursed under her breath, catching Ezio's troubled look. She stopped and had the Auditores gather next to her.

"How are we going to get past them?" Claudia asked in a low tone.

It was silent for a moment. "I'll distract them," said Trinity. "They will all come after me, knowing who I am. It'll give you three a chance to make it out of the city."

"You're going to fight all of them?" asked Ezio, slightly surprised. "You didn't make it out of the last fight-"

"Shut up," Trinity growled, cutting him off, not wanting to hear about it."Protecting your mother and Claudia is more important. Just get them out and to Monterriggioni. I'll catch up with you once I escape the guards."

Ezio looked unconvinced. "Are you sure?" he asked, giving her one last out before they executed the plan.

"Ezio," she said warningly. "Just do as I say, all right?"

He half glared at her from under his hood before she broke away from them to go distract the gate guards.

The Auditores followed several yards behind her, waiting for her to make her move. She had hardly walked very far when a troubadour appeared from her right, following her with his mandolin. He started to sing about a tragedy of love of young adults, to which Trinity tried to ignore. However, he was pushy, seeing that he ran in front of her path to stop her.

She did her best to keep her temper in check, always having been easily annoyed with troubadours, and navigated her way around him, nearing the gate…but again the troubadour blocked her progress. At this, she froze on the spot as he continued to belt out his song.

"_Move…" _she said darkly to him. He didn't hear her though because he was singing so loudly while mindlessly strumming his mandolin. He wasn't very good, as far as troubadours go.

After dealing with another five seconds of singing, Trinity impulsively ripped his instrument from his hands and slammed it onto her knee, snapping it cleanly in half. At this, the troubadour sort of yelped in fear and ran away.

She threw the pieces on the ground, irritated and wondering why the troubadour targeted her for his idiotic song and not someone else who would have been much less intimidating. She was fairly sure she heard Ezio chuckle at her but she ignored that as well.

Wasting no time, Trinity dashed the rest of the way to the gate and planted herself in front of the guards, hands on her hips in taunting fashion.

"Hey!" she called to them, though their attention was already on her. "I bet if one you catch me, you'll be promoted to errand boy instead of a guard dog!"

"Get her!" was one of the guard's immediately responses. Trinity laughed loudly to mock them and sprinted to her right down the street, leading them away from the gate. With a quick glance behind her, she saw the Auditores make a mad dash to escape.

Ezio led his mother and sister past the stables, avoiding a few questioning stares, and down the dirt road. They kept a pace of a jog before slowing down to a quick walk once the city walls were out of their sight.

"How could this have happened to us?" asked Claudia quietly.

Ezio, who was about six feet ahead of them exhaled heavily. "I don't know," he replied, sounding angry.

Claudia glanced at her mother for a moment, who had her eyes cast to the floor. "Will we ever be back…?" Claudia said.

"I don't know."

She caught the heavy irritation in his voice and she fell silent. Ezio, glanced behind him, looking to see if Trinity was coming up down the road…but she wasn't anywhere.

"What will happen to our house?" said Claudia quietly.

"I don't know!" Ezio snapped, turning on the spot to give her a stern look. His sister averted her eyes from him as they stopped in the middle of the lane.

Claudia fidgeted with her fingers. "Were they…" she began, hesitant. "Were they given a proper burial…?"

Ezio turned away from his mother's sorrowful eyes. "Yes," he said in barely above a whisper. "They were…"

He started walking again as they all went silent.

* * *

><p>"Hai paura <em>(Are you afraid)?" <em>laughed Trinity darkly, her sword raised as the remaining three guards of eight circled her. She had easily killed three of them, all of them impulsive with their attacks. She had no issue with counterattacking, as none of them were very agile.

Trinity didn't run very far from the gate, not wanting to have a problem of running into more guards. There was a large crowd of civilians watching, cheering loudly, though Trinity couldn't hear exactly what they were saying.

A guard behind her swung at her, but she had already felt it coming and ducked, the sword coming only a few inches over her. Trinity landed a well placed back kick into the guard's chest, sending him stumbling backwards, as another one made his attack in front of her. She quickly and easily sidestepped the move before stabbing her sword into his chest.

She wrenched it out just in time to deflect the last guard's lunge and give a counterattack to kill him.

Trinity rounded on the guard she had kicked, just recovering from the kick. He fell to his knees, cowering in front of her.

"Please, don't kill me!" he cried, throwing his arms above his head.

The assassin snorted, glaring down at him from beneath her hood. "Why should I grant you such mercy?" she snapped, her sword tip at his neck. She glanced around to see if any more guards were coming but she couldn't see past the throng of civilians.

"I have a wife!" he exclaimed, his voice trembling. "A-a-and three children."

"These men had wives and children too," she spat, gesturing to the dead or dying guards around them. "That does not make you special."

The man started to weep, head on the floor now. "Please," he said. "I'll do anything!"

Trinity rolled her eyes, almost disgusted at his groveling. "Have you no dignity?" she asked, more to herself than to him. She scoffed, sheathing her sword.

At the sound of metal ringing, he looked up and saw her still staring at him but without a weapon. After a second, her left hand shot out and gripped him by the collar.

"Get up," she hissed, wrenching the man to a stand. She pushed the guard forward, through the crowd of citizens towards the gate. Her hidden blade point was touching the man's back as she guided him through the street. "If you try to run, I will kill you."

She pushed him out through the gate and around the corner, away from civilians. Once they were relatively out of sight, she kicked the guard to the floor and stood over him with a threatening air.

It was silent for a moment as the guard cowered away from her, which caused her to walk forward a few steps after him.

She sighed audibly.

"You are possibly the most useless, pathetic guard in existence," said Trinity, losing most of her hostile demeanor. This caught the man off guard, not expecting a lighter tone to come from her lips.

She pulled her hood down, growing hot under its cover even though the sun was setting.

"However," she added, relaxing her stance somewhat, "I won't kill you if you do something for me."

The guard stared blankly at her, very confused now, and didn't reply.

"See that horse right there?" said Trinity, pointing to the chestnut mare that she had ridden to Florence a few days before that was at the stable about fifty feet away. "It's mine…though I can't just walk up and ask for her back anymore, seeing that I'm a wanted criminal."

She paused, letting the information sink in his brain. "Get my horse," she ordered.

The guard looked away for a second in uncertainty. "That's it?"

Trinity smiled slightly, though it was a dark look. "No," she replied. "I want two other horses as well...fast ones."

The guard's eyes widened. "But I can't just-"

She flicked her wrist, her hidden blade springing forth and cutting him short. He backed about a foot away, still on the ground, at the sight of it, especially with that arm being stained with blood already.

"Do you want to live or not?" she asked, the intimidating tone coming back to her. The guard quickly scrambled up and ran towards the stables. Trinity couldn't help but chuckle to herself, enjoying the authority she was able to command through fear.

She watched as the guard argued with the stable master, though she had no idea what he was saying. It was about a seven minute long endeavor and Trinity was steadily growing bored waiting. If they didn't hurry up, she would just take her own horse and leave…

Finally, it looked as though the guard one the argument, especially since he drew a small dagger on the man. The stable master looked incensed as he led a black and white stallion, Trinity's horse, and beige mare over to the guard.

"Grazie," said Trinity pleasantly, mounting her horse when the guard finally brought them over to her. "You've been most helpful."

She tied the reins of one horse on either side of hers so that they'd follow alongside her. The guard started backing away, wanting to make a run for it. Trinity was actually surprised that he hadn't tried to overtake her at all…she guessed he held to much fear of being killed by her to want to try to capture her.

"Hey!" she said, halting him from bolting. He froze on the spot.

Trinity smiled gently at him. "Make sure you treat your wife and children well," she said seriously. "Otherwise, I'll hear about it…and I will hunt you down…and I _will_ kill you."

The guard visibly swallowed, frightened, and nodded.

With that, she had her horses start into a trot down the dirt road. She didn't think the Auditores had gotten that far, especially since Trinity assumed they were walking, not running.

The countryside was quiet, aside from the very rare passing person on the road. Trinity didn't run into anyone for quite some time. Now that she was out of the bustling city of Florence, she was happy to breathe in much cleaner air.

The sun was almost gone from the sky when she rounded a bend, seeing three very familiar figures walking slowly. Upon the sound of the horses' hooves, the three Auditore turned, surprised to find her with steeds.

"Trinity!" exclaimed Claudia as Trinity slowed to a halt. "We were worried you didn't make it out."

The young assassin couldn't help but laugh. "Thank you for your vote of confidence, Claudia," she said. "Come, walking to Monterriggioni will take a day's time. Riding there will cut that time in half."

"Where did you get the horses?" asked Ezio, eyeing her while she untied the reins.

"A parting gift from a guard," she replied simply as he mounted the black horse. Claudia and her mother mounted, with difficulty, the other mare. Ezio did not reply.

_She must have stolen them…_he mused.

They kicked their horses into a gallop, riding hard into the darkness of the countryside of Italy.

* * *

><p>It was well into the night when Trinity, Ezio, and his family slowed their horses to a walk. The moon was hanging dully above them, but still providing enough light for them to see where they were going.<p>

"We should be close," said Trinity, noting the trees and the general scenery.

"Grazie a Dio _(Thank God)_," sighed Claudia.

They rounded a bend, one with a small rock face blocking their view. Once they came around the corner, they saw city walls of Monterriggioni.

However, further up the road were about seven men standing across the lane, blocking them.

Trinity let out an audible groan, not in the mood for another fight. She hated to admit it, but her injured arm was sore.

"What's going on?" Claudia whispered, but no one made to answer as they approached the men.

"Buona sera _(Good evening), _Ezio!" said one of the men who looked like he was the leader.

Trinity quickly analyzed their opposition, realizing they weren't going to be much of a fight. None of them, including the young man with the navy beret and clothes, were wearing any armor. They didn't even look like guards.

"How could you leave Firenze without saying a proper goodbye?" said the man in navy, a snide smirk on his unattractive face.

"Who the hell is he?" Trinity asked, unimpressed with how showy and arrogant the young man was trying to behave.

"Ezio," said Claudia, noticing that more men were circling behind them.

Trinity glanced around, counting about twenty-five men now. At this, she was now concerned. They were heavily outnumbered, and Ezio wasn't precisely handy with a sword.

_Fuck…_she thought coarsely. _They must have been hiding in the trees._

Though, she vaguely did wonder why the man brought so many men with him just to kill a few people. Did he really think Ezio was that much of a challenge?

"What do you want, Vieri?" asked Ezio, noticing the guards starting to slowly close in on them.

Trinity quickly dismounted, not wanting to get caught off guard on her horse.

"So many things," said the man in a sort of mocking tone, who Trinity guessed was named Vieri.

"A larger palazzo, two new steeds," he paused, "…a prettier bride."

He smirked at Trinity, who rolled her eyes and felt like gagging.

"Oh and yes," said Vieri, unsheathing his sword and pointing at Ezio, "your life."

Trinity immediately unsheathed her twin daggers. "If you want his life," she said with an air of her own arrogance, "you'll have to claim mine first."

In truth, she really did not want to die for Ezio's sake…because she hated him…but her father asked her to protect and save the Auditore family…and she would do so to the bitter end, even if that meant her own death. She had failed with Giovanni, Federico, and Petruccio…she would not fail with the rest.

Ezio turned a surprised gaze down to the figure in front of him, astonished to hear what she had said.

"Mi dispiace _(I'm sorry),_ pretty," Vieri laughed derisively. "But I have no intention of killing _you."_

"Is that so?"

He smirked again and gave a motion for about half of his men to start attacking. "You'll be coming home with me, as _you_ will be my prettier bride," he concluded, as his men drew closer. Trinity burst out laughing in spite of the situation.

"I don't go home with little boys who don't have the balls to fight for themselves," she countered as she started to fend off attacks at her. At this, she saw Vieri's smirk fade dramatically and was rendered speechless.

Ezio had been wrenched off his horse by a guard but luckily, Ezio was able to roll away out of danger quick enough before his attacker slammed a mace to the floor, just where Ezio's face had been.

"Ezio!" shouted Trinity, tossing her sword to him when he stood up. "Protect your mother and sister!"

He turned to find his mother and sister had also been pulled from their horse, Claudia screaming for Ezio's help. Two guards were converging onto them but Ezio sprinted after them, driving his sword into the small of one of the guard's backs.

"My condolences for the loss of you father and brothers!" shouted Vieri mockingly over the ringing of metal. He was standing with another guard, watching Trinity and Ezio fight their way out. "What will happen now that there is no one left to help you?"

Trinity, who had cut down about six guards now, was steadily nearing Vieri.

"I have such wonderful things in store for your mother and sister!" he called over to Ezio. At this, Trinity could feel more anger begin to explode in Ezio.

She dodged an attack by diving to the right, going into a roll, and swiftly coming back up to stab her daggers into a guard's back, leaving two for her to deal with.

"And the Aldinucci family is no better off, I hear," said Vieri with his ever present smirk. Trinity looked over at Vieri, surprised that he knew who she was. "At least they kept you alive so that I could keep you as my own."

Because she was distracted with Vieri, a guard lunged at her, catching her off guard. She barely had enough time to block the attack, which caused her to stumble back.

"Who is the man that killed my family!" Trinity demanded, finishing off another guard and giving Vieri a dark look.

"Mi dispiace," he replied unapologetically, "but I'm not at liberty to share that with you, who is an enemy of my allies."

Trinity, in all her anger, stabbed her dagger of the chin of the final guard and wrenched it out and she rounded on Vieri and the rest of the men he had.

But Claudia shrieked from behind her. "Ezio!"

Trinity turned, seeing that Ezio had killed two guards but the remaining three were giving him trouble. One of them had grabbed a hold Claudia by the waist and started dragging her away, but Ezio was still on the defensive with two other guards.

She dashed back down the road, throwing her two daggers at the two guards Ezio was fighting when she was about four yards away. Her daggers lodged themselves into the backs of the guards as Trinity sprinted past, flicking her wrist with her hidden blade.

The guard who had Claudia immediately released her but he didn't have enough time to defend himself before Trinity leapt onto him, slamming her hidden blade into the junction of his shoulder and neck.

When they hit the floor, she wrenched it out and turned to see if Claudia and her mother were all right.

"I grow tired of these games…" said Vieri indifferently.

Trinity pulled out her daggers from the two guards she had thrown them at as she and Ezio advanced on the remaining guards. She wanted to say something but she decided to keep her mouth shut instead.

"Finish them!" he shouted, motioning for the last ten guards to attack. "Only spare the girl."

The guards started to rush but a volley of arrows came flying from every which direction, killing three of them. Ezio and Trinity stopped on the spot in surprise, unsure of where the arrows had originated from.

"What sorcery is this!" cried Vieri, looking around frantically with his sword drawn.

There was a hearty laugh from somewhere they couldn't pinpoint. "Not sorcery, boy," said the voice. "Skill!"

Vieri raised his weapon. "Show yourself!" he demanded.

"As you wish," said the mysterious voice before a small hand axe was thrown at Vieri, knocking his sword from his hand.

Trinity saw Mario and about five mercenaries emerge from the trees surrounding the road. She let out a small sigh of relief, glad to have someone next to her that actually knew how to use a sword.

"Kill them!" shouted Vieri to his remaining guards. "Kill them all!"

At this, Mario looked amused and ran after Vieri. Scared for his life, he bolted, leaving his men to defend themselves.

They were easy to defeat, Trinity having taken care of two, Ezio one, and Mario and his mercenaries finished off the final four.

Once it was over, Ezio made to hand Trinity her sword back. She shook her head, waving him off dismissively.

"Keep it."

Ezio thanked her before he pulled down his hood and approached Mario. "You have my thanks," he said, lowering his head respectfully, hand at his heart.

"You don't have to thank me, Ezio," said Mario, smiling. Ezio raised his head, eying Mario with wary confusion.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" he asked. Trinity snorted from behind him, shaking her head.

"Don't you recognize me?" he laughed. "It's a-me, Mario!"

"Uncle Mario?" said Ezio with surprise as his uncle reached out and bear hugged him.

He hugged him so tight that he lifted Ezio off his feet for a second. "It's been too long, nipote _(nephew), _far too long!" said Mario, ruffling Ezio's hair. He looked over at Trinity, who was standing by Claudia and Maria.

"Mario, I-" she broke off, unsure and guilty. "I wasn't able to reach them in time. I…was too late."

Mario smiled as gently as his face could manage at the girl and put his hand on her shoulder. "You did what you could, Trinity," he said. "There is no blame to be placed on you. I already heard what had happened in Firenze."

"I'm so sorry," said Trinity quietly, lowering her eyes.

There was a silent moment between everyone before Mario spoke up again. "Come, let's get you all inside. I'm sure you need rest."


	9. Training

**All credits to Ubisoft for anything Assassin's Creed.**

**Hey howdy hey! Here is a short chapter to keep you guys occupied. thank you for all the reviews and subscribers. you guys are so amazing. thank you.**

Chapter Eight: Training

The Auditores and Trinity walked through Monterriggioni without so much as a word from anyone. Mario led them up the steps towards the villa.

Ezio gazed at the large house, remembering it looking a little grander as a child. Now, it was run down with wood planks nailed over the windows. He caught Claudia's apprehensive look before they went inside.

Luckily, the interior was still well taken care of, the white marble still sparkled clean. They all stopped in the foyer and Trinity finally lowered her hood. Mario had a servant bring Claudia and Maria to a room for them to rest, seeing that they were not needed to discuss what happened in Florence. Once they heard the door close somewhere upstairs, Mario turned to the two teenaged assassins.

"So, tell me everything."

It took a small moment for Ezio to reply.

"They executed father for treason," he relayed, sounding angry. "Federico and Petruccio too."

"They came after Ezio as well," said Trinity, folding her arms. "It took us a while to get out of the city. Ezio had some…things to attend to."

She cast a dark glance at him, which he ignored.

"I don't understand," sighed Mario, running a hand over his battle-scarred face. "Do you know why?"

Ezio shook his head slowly. "I have no answers, uncle…" he replied. "Only a list of names from a man who wished me dead."

Trinity snapped her gaze back to Ezio again. "What?" she asked, sounding surprised and angry. "From Uberto?"

"Yes," said Ezio, confused with her tone.

She eyed him, having not been aware that Ezio had even searched the Gonfaloniere's body when he had killed him. Trinity didn't see him take anything…but then again, she had been distracted with watching for guards.

"I still can't believe they are gone," said Ezio, breaking her through her thinking of earlier that day.

"Do not worry, Ezio," said Mario consolingly, putting a hand on his nephew's shoulder. "We will make sense of this."

"I wish I shared your optimism," admitted Ezio.

Mario smiled as reassuringly as he could manage; after all, he had just lost his brother and two nephews. "Your rooms are prepared for you. Sleep well tonight and tomorrow morning, Ezio, go to the market. My men will have some gear for you to outfit yourself with," he explained.

Ezio looked confused. "For what?" he asked.

"Tomorrow morning we begin your training, so you'll need your armor and weapons," replied Mario, looking as if Ezio should already know this.

There was an awkward silence between them.

"Ezio doesn't know anything, Mario," offered Trinity. "Giovanni told him nothing."

Mario looked somewhat astonished at this. "You're not here to train?" was all he managed to say.

"No, uncle," said Ezio, just as confused as Mario. "I came here to escape Firenze…and I intend to take my family further still."

Trinity could sense the slightest amount of anger coming from Mario. She understood how he felt though…Trinity's life now revolved around finishing what her father started and yet Ezio was going to leave his father's work to the wayside.

_Giovanni should have told him from the beginning, _she thought, strangely irritated. _It would have saved a lot of trouble on my part._

"We should sleep," she suggested finally. "We can discuss everything in the morning."

The two men agreed and Mario explained where their rooms were before he turned to go upstairs to sleep.

Trinity, however, did not turn to go upstairs as well, but to leave the villa. Ezio quickly reached out and caught her by her upper arm. She involuntarily gasped in pain since he grabbed her injured left arm.

"Sorry," he said automatically, releasing her.

She half-heartedly glared at him. "What?" she snapped.

"You promised you would tell me why you came to Firenze," he said to her back. "You refused to explain anything to me until we arrived in Monterriggioni…and now we're here. So, you need to start talking."

Trinity didn't reply, only standing in front of the entryway with her back facing him. After a moment, she started to walk again.

"Just go to bed, Ezio," she said, leaving through the doorway. "Everything will be explained to you tomorrow morning."

He ground his teeth together, having no patience anymore for her stubbornness.

"Fine," Ezio growled, turning on his heel and leaving.

No one slept well that night, despite the fact that the Auditore family was finally safe from harm, at least for now.

Ezio thought he heard sobbing the majority of the night. He could tell it was female but he couldn't be sure if it was his mother or sister, or if it was Trinity. It was far too faint for him to be able to discern it…though what he did hear, it sounded like a heart-wrenching cry, one where a dam had been released and there was no stopping the flow of pain.

He fell asleep to the sounds of the sobbing.

* * *

><p>"Your eyes are red."<p>

Trinity threw her signature death glare in Ezio's direction.

He had just come back from outfitting himself with the gear that his uncle had gotten for him. He had on simple leather armor, his assassin's robes, and his weapons, including his hidden blade.

Trinity, however, did not don her assassin robes, seeing that they were being repaired and cleaned at the local tailor from her brush with the guards yesterday. Thinking on it, she realized she had been in three separate fights with guards within a half a day's time…which was a first. She hoped it would never repeat itself.

She blamed Ezio for that and did so without shame.

In place of her robes, she was wearing only dark brown breeches that tucked into her brown, leather boots, and a loose fitting shirt. As far as weapons went, she only had her hidden blade and her two daggers attached to her belt, seeing that she gave her sword to Ezio the night before.

The pair was waiting for Mario in his study, both standing at near opposite sides of the room in a somewhat awkward silence.

"Master of the obvious, aren't you?" she snapped, leaning against the wall with her arms folded.

Ezio rolled his eyes but dropped the subject. He didn't feel like fighting with her so early in the morning.

A moment later, and as if on cue, Mario strolled in. "Ah!" he said, surprised they were there waiting. "I wasn't aware that you had received your gear yet, Ezio. That was quick."

"Thank you uncle," said Ezio gratefully. "You did not have to go through the trouble-"

"You are family," interjected Mario dismissively. "Now…let us teach you how to fight, eh?"

"No," said Ezio immediately. He realized it sounded harsh and rude so he calmed himself for a second. "As I said last night, I'm leaving with my mother and sister."

Trinity scoffed from her corner of the study. She lifted up her blood shot eyes and sort of smirked darkly at him.

"You barely held your own against Vieri's men last night, Ezio," she said, pushing herself off the wall to stand straighter. "By the time I had killed ten guards, you had only killed one. If you remember, I saved you and your sister as well."

Ezio scowled at her and opened his mouth to speak.

"You wouldn't survive a week on the road," she continued scathingly before he could say a word. "I don't care if you want to leave or not; it's none of my business. But I will not allow you to put your mother and sister in danger when I did everything I could to ensure their safety."

"You need to be armed with skills and knowledge necessary to defend yourself, nipote _(nephew)_," added Mario. "If you won't do it for me…do it for your mother and sister."

Ezio hated when he was tag-teamed by Trinity and someone else. She did it with Paola too.

"Fine," he relented angrily. "But before I start any training…I need answers."

He turned to Trinity, who raised an eyebrow at him.

"You've avoided the question long enough," Ezio said. "Why did you turn up in Firenze? You said you were there to see my father."

Trinity glanced at Mario, who nodded slightly behind Ezio, as if giving her permission to speak.

She sighed, annoyed. "Well, I guess there is no use dancing around it," she said, turning to Mario's desk and leaning against it in half a sitting position. "You father was an Assassin."

Ezio did not look convinced. "My father was a paper pusher," he practically snarled.

"No, Ezio," said Mario as gently as he could. "Your father was born and bred to kill."

The young Auditore held a blank expression for a moment.

"Look," huffed Trinity, "your family, the Auditore family, has had a long line of assassins for centuries. My family is no different.

"Our fathers were assassin confidents, which is why they were always in contact with each other and why our families were always on good terms," she explained. "My brothers were trained to become assassins, to follow my father's footsteps and work."

Ezio did not reply for a moment. "And he trained you, I assume," he said, already knowing the answer.

"Yes," she answered. "My mother was against it in the beginning…but I still managed to convince my father to train me as well, though it wasn't entirely expected of me to follow the life of an assassin."

"You and Federico were supposed to be under your father's training by now," said Mario. "Federico might have already been under training and you did not even realize it."

"This still doesn't explain what you were doing in Firenze."

Trinity exhaled heavily again.

"Four days prior to your father's execution, my family was murdered," she said bluntly. "My father…I think he was on his way to Firenze when they caught us by surprise."

She paused, trying to formulate her thoughts.

"My father knew about something…something that involved your family and some sort of conspiracy," she continued, pacing the room. "He didn't have enough time to explain to me what he was talking about, or who the conspiracy involved…he only told me to get to you as fast as possible. That's it. I have no other reason for being there."

It fell silent.

Trinity could see that Ezio's mind was turning furiously at the information that he had just gained. It was obvious that a certain amount of denial was still prevalent but she didn't comment on it, hoping he wouldn't be adamant about his father being a banker, not an assassin.

"All right," he said, unfolding his arms finally. Ezio turned to his uncle. "Let's start the training then."

And so they trained.

For weeks…

Ezio, originally had no intention of staying for this long to train, having only thought it would take a few days…but he realized that his uncle had so much more information about his father's work than he could have imagined. That aside, Ezio realized just how poorly his combat skills were so out of sheer pride, he wanted to prove to anyone and everyone that he could learn to fight, even this far into his life.

Claudia was angry at Ezio's decision to stay for longer than planned…but with a little reasoning, she let the situation stand. She knew that Ezio wouldn't be able to protect her and their mother unless he was trained properly.

Mario knew of the Codex page that Ezio had had without having been told. Mario also took the time to explain everything in detail as best he could about his brother being an assassin. With all the new information, Ezio started picking apart his uncle's library, wondering why his father had kept his true nature secret for so long. He never really got answers.

Trinity was never present for any of Ezio's training sessions…not once. In fact, in the last month, he very rarely saw her. Usually, she was hiding in the study at the top of the villa, pouring over documents and maps. When he did see her, it was at dinner, and she took that time as an opportunity to chide Ezio about his training performance.

"I've seen you on occasion," she said airily just to goad him. "Your stance needs correcting and you rely far too heavily on sight and strength."

And then they would continue bickering for the rest of dinner.

That was their routine. They never stopped arguing or picking on the other, even if they only saw each other for three minutes. Mario always found it amusing, as if they were two small children fighting over a toy or a parent's attention.

As time wore on, training was becoming more intense. Ezio was always sore, using muscles he never knew existed until he would wake up and find himself stiff as a board. Trinity made an appearance to one of his sessions…challenging him to a duel. Ezio, as stubborn as he was, accepted without thinking. Needless to say, he lost humiliatingly to her, where he was on the floor on his back, weaponless, and she was standing over him with a sword point at his throat…all within a six minute span.

She had seemed almost disgusted with his performance as she turned her back on him and Ezio had resolved to work harder just so he could be ready for another arbitrary duel with her.

He worked hard and Mario noticed. His uncle was beginning to wonder if he was only working this hard because he wanted to protect his family…or if it inadvertently became a pride issue where he wanted to prove Trinity wrong. At the end of every day, he sometimes couldn't even move because he was so exhausted.

Today however, he had the day off.

Mario cut him some slack, seeing his performance dropping due the lack of mobility in his arms.

Ezio didn't have much to account for his day, though he slept in late, spent some quality time with some of the courtesans at the brothel, and now was standing on Monterriggioni's outer wall, over looking the soon to be setting sun and landscape. There was a slight breeze, which was cooling and the air was fresh.

"Thank you, Mario," said a familiar voice distantly. "For everything."

Confused, Ezio cast his gaze downwards where the only entrance to the city was beneath him. He saw two figures exiting the city. One was easily recognizable as his uncle, and the other was dressed in all white.

At the recognition of Trinity and Mario, Ezio straightened up from his leaning position and listened intently.

"Of course," said his uncle, waving for the stable boy to bring a horse over. "Are you sure there is nothing else that I can do for you?"

Trinity took the reins of the black stallion. "No," she replied, stroking the nose of the horse while the stable boy put on the tackle for her. "I have everything I need. I'll return as soon as I am finished with the business I must attend to."

Mario lowered his head in understanding as she mounted her horse. She reined the horse around to face Ezio's uncle and stared down at him.

"Buona fortuna, Trinity," he said to her.

"Grazie…I suspect the idiota will be a worthy opponent upon my return?" she asked, the slightest amount teasing prevalent. Ezio snorted quietly with irritation at the name-calling, going unnoticed from below.

Mario sort of laughed. "Ezio is in good hands."

"I know," said Trinity sincerely, turning her horse back around towards the fork in the road that lead either to Florence or through Tuscany. "Don't go easy because he is your nephew, eh?"

With that, she kicked her horse into a gallop, taking the left hand path that led through the Tuscan countryside.

Ezio quickly turned on his heel, sliding quickly down the ladder to the top of a roof. He leapt onto a pile of sturdy crates, and then onto the street floor, causing minor alarm from a group of courtesans and mercenaries.

He wondered why she was leaving Monterriggioni without an explanation, or even a good-bye. It was all very sudden and it confused Ezio. She had made no indication for the last month that she had intentions of leaving.

Mario was strolling into the city when Ezio met him. Mario raised an eyebrow, seeing the darkened expression his nephew had on.

"Where is Trinity going?" Ezio asked.

His uncle eyed him curiously. "I'm not sure," he admitted with a small shrug. "She wouldn't say but she was insistent upon leaving. I have my suspicions though."

Mario started to walk back towards the villa, Ezio following him like a dog to his master. "And that is…?" pressed Ezio when Mario didn't elaborate.

His uncle chuckled. "Trinity is probably going to search for her family's murderer," Mario said. "Well, search for and kill him, of course. Unlike you, she had not been able to exact revenge for the death of her family. I don't know the level of her skill and depending on the murderer himself, it could take years for her to find him."

Mario glanced over at his nephew, seeing a slightly angered and troubled expression on his face, whether Ezio knew he had it or not.

At this, Mario had to laugh outright. "I wouldn't have said good-bye to you either, nipote, if I was her…" he said, patting Ezio on the shoulder consolingly. "But I suspect you'll see her again soon enough."

Ezio immediately, and furiously, stated that he did not care about the fact that Trinity had not bid him farewell and that he also didn't care if he ever saw her again because he couldn't stand her. Mario saw this as an opportunity to continue teasing him all the way back to the villa, only angering his nephew more.


	10. Duello

**All credits to Ubisoft for creating such an amazing game that is Assassin's Creed! and credits to whoever else that I don't know about.**

**Here is the next chapter everyone. Thank you so much for all the reviews and subscribers and those who have placed this little story in their favorites. You guys are fricken amazing and it makes me so happy that I have such followers of this story. Anyways, enough rambling. Feel free to review and/or criticize! Please enjoy it!**

Chapter Nine: Duello

It was mid-morning when the city of Milano fell into Trinity's view. She sort of sighed in relief, having been tired of sitting atop her horse for the last god knows how many hours.

As she continued along the main road at a steady pace, she let her mind wander off, her blue eyes staring unblinkingly before her.

A year had passed since she left Monterriggioni behind her.

She had immediately left for San Gimignano, tracking down Vieri de' Pazzi within a matter of days. Her first encounter with him had revealed that he was aware of her circumstances with her family.

Trinity, in turn, inferred that Vieri, the vile coward, had the answers to the burning question of who killed her family. However, she could already see that Vieri probably would not cooperate willingly with her…so force would need to be used.

Vieri had fled from the fight to San Gimignano, which Trinity found out was a Pazzi controlled territory. She found him three days after entering the city, hiding in his moderately guarded palazzo. Trinity easily infiltrated said building, remaining largely undetected, save for one guard. She killed him before he had a chance to call for help.

Trinity confronted Vieri within his own quarters, sneaking in through his bedroom window. She caught him in the midst of him raping a young girl, who was crying hysterically as Vieri had her pinned to the bed.

Trinity had wrenched him off the girl and threw him to the floor, in all his disgusting nakedness, and for the hell of it, kicked him squarely in the jaw.

"Get dressed," Trinity told the girl, clutching Vieri's throat with him pinned and holding him at blade point with her hidden blade. The girl did so with a little hesitation.

Vieri managed to find his voice and laughed derisively.

"Look who has come to pay me a visit," he said. Vieri clearly was not at all intimidated by her or the fact that he was completely defenseless. "Jealous of her, are we?"

Trinity gave him a look of utter disgust, mixed with an expression of minor astonishment in him thinking, or even suggesting, that that was why she was here.

"Shut up," she snapped, digging her blade into his neck, causing him to freeze at the cold metal touching his skin. "If you value your life, you disgusting fuck, you will answer this one question."

Vieri narrowed his eyes slyly. "And what is that?" he asked, as if this was a game.

Trinity pushed her hidden blade slightly more into his neck, triggering a small noise of pain from him. She drew a drop or two of blood before speaking again.

"I know you know, Vieri," she said in a low tone, eyes gleaming dangerously. "Who is the man that killed my family?"

At this Vieri started to smirk widely. "Do you honestly think," he said mockingly, "that I would reveal that to you? Even with my life on the line, I will not-"

Trinity's fingers dug into his neck in anger, cutting him off. "Dimmi, pezzo di merda! _(Tell me, you piece of shit!)" _she shouted, retracting her blade and decking him in the face.

There was a sickening crack, the noise that she had broken his nose, and blood started rush forth.

But he only laughed.

"Look at you, in all your rage!" he cried, amused. "You will never be able to avenge your family's death!"

Trinity's eyes darkened further. "And _you _will die," she whispered.

But before she could slice his throat, Vieri spat into her face, blinding her for a few seconds. He took this opportunity to push her away and scramble to a stand.

Vieri was already running towards the door across the room, screaming for guards to come. Trinity tailed him as he wrenched open the door, running out, still entirely bare skinned.

"Follow me!" shouted Trinity over her shoulder to the girl he had violated. Trinity did not check to see if she was following or not, but chased Vieri down the hall.

Quickly, she threw a thrown dagger.

The dagger dug itself into the small of Vieri's back, causing him to stumble forward. He didn't fall completely and rose to a stand to keep running towards the stairs.

Trinity cursed under her breath.

She threw another dagger, having no time to chase him throughout the palazzo because she knew with all of Vieri's screaming, guards would be on her and the girl in a matter of minutes. The second dagger lodged itself into Vieri's upper back and had enough force behind it to send him to the floor.

Trinity didn't have enough time to check if it was enough to cause his death or wait for him to die because she heard the young girl run up behind her. Trinity immediately grabbed her hand and dragged her into the nearest room, locking the door behind them so they had more time to escape. Trinity then immediately pushed a couple chairs in front of the door to keep it shut.

Thankfully, with a bit of resourceful thinking, Trinity was able to wrap a sturdy curtain rope from the room's large window around the balcony and lowered it to the floor below, which wasn't far down at all.

The girl needed stern encouragement to climb down by herself. Trinity had basically yelled at her that she wouldn't live if she didn't…which got the girl to go somewhat willingly. That aside, the guards were banging on the door and there was little time, so this urged her further.

Trinity, however, did not use the rope and only leapt ten feet down to the courtyard below.

And they escaped.

Trinity, presently, sighed. She had gotten nothing from her encounter with Vieri…although, hopefully she was able to kill him. And she did end up rescuing that girl.

But that was months ago…and Trinity had been chasing the smallest leads ever since. Nothing seemed to turn up information…whoever her family's murderer was, he kept himself hidden well from even his own Templar Order allies. Only those who worked closely with him seemed to know his name.

Hopefully Milano would bring about better results.

* * *

><p>The days had seemed to blur together. Every new day was like the one before it. Ezio had a hard time, and a lack of interest, with keeping track of the months that passed. The majority of the time, he was going through his extensive and brutal training with his uncle.<p>

If he was not doing that, he was either running errands for Mario or sleeping because he was so exhausted. Or if Ezio found the time, he would sit and pour endlessly over the history of the Auditore line and its involvement as assassins.

Mario worked Ezio to the bone and did so with little shame. He refused to let his nephew gallivant around without proper knowledge. It was rough though…because he was forcing so much information and training into such a short amount of time. Giovanni should have started Ezio's training years before the execution, when he was still a boy, to capitalize on his energy and growth.

However, Giovanni didn't, and now Mario was forced to make due. Thankfully, Ezio was a quick and eager pupil, picking up skills quite rapidly. It impressed Mario to see someone be able to retain knowledge and combat ability so quickly and with relative ease.

Mario had taken the time, to some degree, to explain the Auditore family history and the importance of the Codex pages. It was a lot of information for Ezio to receive, but he took it well.

A year had gone by…and no word from Trinity.

No letters, no presents…she didn't show up either. It was almost as if she had vanished. Ezio wasn't all that concerned whether she would return or not…but he always did vaguely wonder if she was still alive. To this day, he still found it irritating that she had not told anyone of her departure other than Mario.

Ezio's mother, Maria, still hadn't found her voice, and left her quarters very rarely. She seemed in a slightly better mood as days wore on but she could not speak. It saddened her children immensely but there was nothing they could do. The majority of the time when Ezio would visit her in her room, he would find his mother praying…or staring listlessly out the window at nothing in particular.

He tried to treat her as if there was nothing wrong with her so he would talk to her on a regular basis…just to keep some social interaction with her. Hopefully, she'll be able to nod her head in response, at the very least.

Claudia kept busy by tending to household chores and management since Mario clearly did not. Ezio figured this was sort of a peeve of Claudia's, seeing the villa in such disarray. His sister would be cleaning, cooking, or something similar if she was not tending to their mother. Claudia still held a small grudge against Ezio, having thought they would have only remained for a few months at the most in Monterriggioni, not an entire year thus far. The only thing Ezio could do was apologize for the inconvenience to her.

As time passed, Monterriggioni slipped further still into shambles. Very few shops remained open in the small market…and they were struggling to remain. Even the local tavern was having a hard time staying in business. Hardly any visitors came into the city on their way to or from Florence, not wanting to risk anything in a city filled with thieves, courtesans, and mercenaries. Mario always mentioned how he wished he had the time and money to rebuild the city but he never put much effort other than in talking of it.

* * *

><p>It was mid September and the weather was nice that day. It was only a few months away from being the two-year anniversary of the Auditore execution.<p>

Ezio had had only a light day of training today, by the grace of his uncle. He was particularly keen on getting away from the villa for a bit, especially before Claudia found him and forced chores onto into his hands. That aside, he didn't feel like delving into the Auditore history more than he had for over a year and a half.

Many who lived within the city walls knew who Ezio was by now and many, mostly women, greeted him as he passed. He enjoyed the recognition, despite his notoriety with the young girls of Monterriggioni. Ezio had led on a few hearts…though he felt very little guilt for it.

Within minutes, he was outside the brothel. However, he didn't even need to enter it, as a woman was standing near the door, as if waiting for him. The moment she saw him, she smiled with her most seductive air.

Ezio approached her slowly, his lips pulling into a smirk. Out of the many courtesans he had the pleasure of trying, this woman was by far the most skilled…so he had, in a way, become her regular. She did not seem to oppose the idea though, as she always welcomed him with open arms. The woman wasn't the most attractive of the bunch, but he wasn't looking for a pretty face as much as what he was looking for behind closed doors.

"Ezio," she said as he closed the gap between them. He let his hands glide smoothly over her waist to her back as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "You're early."

"I wanted more time than you usually give me," he replied before his lips kissed her roughly. "That is if you don't mind…"

She giggled, a noise Ezio admittedly found nauseating, but he had learned to ignore it. Thankfully, she did not laugh during sex, otherwise it would have caused a problem.

"Of course not, Ezio," she whispered as flirtatiously as she could manage. She pulled away from him and moved towards the door, pulling him by the shirt to follow.

Ezio eyed her approvingly, stepping forward.

"I see you haven't changed at all," called a strangely familiar voice from somewhere behind him. Ezio froze, feeling an odd sort of irritation spark within his chest at the sound of this voice. It instantly made him want to strangle someone.

He turned his head and looked down the street. A few yards away, a woman in white robes stood there, hood lowered…and with a dark smirk plastered on her face. There was almost an air of arrogance to her stance, an air that Ezio found immediately aggravating.

But dark chuckle escaped his lips and he smiled slyly. Ezio turned completely, the courtesan releasing her hold on his shirt, to face the woman.

"The invitation is open to join us, if you're interested, Trinity," he shot back. "But only if you beg."

Even from the distance, he heard Trinity scoff in dark amusement at the inside joke. "As if I'd beg," she replied apathetically, turning back to face the other end of the street. As she walked away, she called over her shoulder while waving a hand dismissively, "I'm sure you have much to attend to, Ezio, so please, don't let my return deviate you!."

"It doesn't," he called back, watching her.

Trinity turned her head to smirk once more at him before she turned the corner and out of his sight.

Ezio smiled darkly to himself before he turned back to the courtesan, who looked mildly confused at what just transpired.

"Now…" he whispered, closing the gap between them. "Where were we?"

* * *

><p>"Finished already?" asked Trinity in mock surprise as Ezio walked into the dining room about a half hour later. "That was a little quick. For someone who spreads the legs of women so often, you think your stamina would be a little better."<p>

Ezio eyed her with a mixture of irritation and the slightest amount of amusement while, Mario, who had been welcoming Trinity back to Monterriggioni, could not help but chuckle. She always did have biting comments.

"Let me guess," she continued, putting her feet up on the table. "One, two…ughh, I'm done…"

"I see you're more insufferable than last I saw you," Ezio replied indifferently, taking a seat at the head of the table. "I'm surprised you're even alive at all, given with that mouth. I was sure it would have gotten you killed."

Mario, though silent, shook his head, thought it went unnoticed. Within two minutes of being in each other's presence, they were already bickering like siblings, despite the fact that Trinity had been gone for the last year and a half.

Two minutes.

He didn't understand why these two could not conduct any civil conversation around each other but instead, continuously and shamelessly took stabs at the other's ego as well as insult each other until they were blue in the face. If left unchecked by anyone, it usually ended up in an all out war of words between the two, instead of a few jabs here and a couple blows there.

"Are you two finished…?" he said finally. Mario had had enough once he heard Ezio's comment on how Trinity's "apparent" lack of sexual life causes her to be intolerable and mouthy…which warranted a snippy remark from Trinity about Ezio's overactive sexual life will contract a disease and hence become the laughing stock of Italy because no women would bed him.

The pair were now standing, having been arguing like this for the last minute, and looked over at Mario. He had his eyebrow raised at them, with an expression of semi-annoyance.

Both immediately sat down at their elder's irritation. A moment of awkward silence passed before Mario turned his gaze to Trinity.

"As I was saying before," he said, "were your travels successful?"

At this Trinity sighed.

"Unfortunately, no," she admitted. "To an extent, at least."

She didn't want to elaborate on anything, having no desire to explain that she not only failed to track down her family's murderer but she wasn't even able to find his name…especially with Ezio here to harass her about it. Trinity also didn't want to explain that she had run around the whole damn country, from San Gimiganano to Milano and back to Venezia, to name a few, and all of it in vain.

"But I do have this," she said, reaching inside her robes.

The two Auditore men watched as she slid a folded parchment onto the table. Mario was the first to make for it and he opened it up.

"A Codex page," he exclaimed, truly surprised. "Where did you find it?"

Trinity smiled slightly. "Venezia," she replied. "There was a cluster of guards standing watch over a room. Out of curiosity, I wanted to see what they were guarding…and found that in there."

Ezio and Mario looked over the arcane writing, unable to decipher anything it was saying.

"Also," continued Trinity, recapturing their attention, "I had been able to acquire quite a bit of money. I had no particular use for it but I thought it would be good for Monterriggioni if we start rebuilding it and I am not opposed to giving my money for it."

"And how exactly were you able to acquire such money?" asked Ezio warily, already having a good idea of the answer.

Trinity was playing with her hidden blade idly, having it spring forth and retract at regular intervals. She glanced up at him, her blue eyes shaded with irritation.

"That is none of your business," she said simply.

Ezio smirked, seeing an opening.

"I didn't know you joined a brothel while you were away," he chided automatically. "I would have paid good money to see that."

Trinity's hidden blade snapped forward as her eyes simultaneously looked at him with the darkest expression.

"Ezio," warned Mario. "Enough already."

His nephew chuckled and dropped the subject.

"If you simply must know," said Trinity with a roll of her blue eyes, "I took on various assassination contracts while away."

Ezio tried to imagine Trinity running around assassinating her targets; he had a feeling she liked to instill quite a bit of fear into them before she actually put them out of their misery.

"Has this stronzo _(fucker _or_ asshole) _gotten any better at fighting?" she asked, recapturing Ezio's attention. She turned her gaze to Mario.

Ezio's uncle grinned. "He is making fine progress," said Mario enthusiastically. "Ezio is a much better fighter than you last saw him."

At this, Ezio gave her a look of triumph.

"Hmm," she replied thoughtfully and rising to a stand. "Well then, Ezio. I have no other choice than to challenge you to a duel. Prove to me you're as good as your uncle claims you are…"

Ezio and Trinity stared each other down for a long moment, neither blinking or looking away.

"I accept your challenge."

Ten minutes later, they were in the fighting ring out in the courtyard. Ezio and Trinity had been given heavily blunted swords to duel with so they could strike each other but cause far less damage than an actual sharpened sword.

The pair stood at opposite ends of each other, waiting for Mario to give the signal to start the duel. Trinity had not taken off her assassin's robes or any other accessories, so she was weighed down more than Ezio, who only had a loose fitting shirt, pants, and boots.

There had been a few of Mario's men training in the ring beforehand so they had remained to watch the fight.

"Pronti? _(Ready?)" _said Mario, standing between them. They both nodded in unison, before turning to face each other. "Combatti! _(Fight!)"_

Immediately, the pair started to circle around the ring, swords aloft and eyes burning to the other. Trinity watched his feet, making mental notes on what he needed to correct.

"Make me proud, nipote!" called Mario once he was out of the ring and watching.

His nephew let a sly grin twitch over his lips momentarily but did not reply.

Ezio, predictably, made the first move. He went for an opening at her thigh, which she easily parried and counterattacked. She was fast, faster than anyone Ezio had been fighting in the last year, and she landed a blow right at his left ribs. The hit caused a good amount of pain, seeing it was all bone that she had hit, and Ezio had to make sure he kept his mouth shut to a noise of pain.

Angered that she had already had her first point against him, he swung at her again. Trinity could see that his resolve turned to steel in his eyes; he wasn't about to lose this fight…but if he did, he wasn't going to let her win so easily.

They continued their dance, the fight resembling more of fencing as their swords continually clashed against each other. She had to admit, Ezio was a lot better than the last time she had fought him. He did manage to get a couple hits to her, one at her hip and the other on her thigh, but she had already multiple blows on him, more than she could count.

"You have good form," noted Trinity honestly as her blade smacked Ezio in the arm, making him jerk back from the sting. She took this opportunity to shrug out of her top, outer portion of her robes because she was sweating. She tossed it behind her onto the ring's barrier. "But how is your footwork?"

She circled him like predator to prey. Trinity jabbed at him, to which he parried but was caught off guard by a well-placed kick to the chest. He stumbled back, breathless.

"Hey!" he cried, going quickly back into a defensive stance. "I thought this was a fair fight!"

Trinity smirked. "What are you, a bambina _(little girl)_?" she taunted while laughing. "Do you think guards or your enemies will fight fair?"

She had a point…but if she was going to play that way, than there was no way Ezio would not.

The sound of ringing metal brought about a crowd of civilians, one that also included Claudia and Maria. Before long, over half of Monterriggioni was watching the duel between the two teenagers, cheering for their preferred fighter. Neither Ezio nor Trinity could hear who was the crowd favorite, as they were not paying attention to the huzzahs and shouts of praises. Because the ring was so crowded, many people, mostly thieves, had climbed the trees and buildings to watch the fight from above.

Though he was doing better, Trinity would not say that Ezio had a chance of beating her…because he was still rough around the edges, but he definitely was putting up a good enough fight for her. In fact, this was her most intense fight with anyone in the last several months. However, Ezio was fighting out of determination at this point, because he was going tired now, sweating almost profusely with his mouth slightly open from panting.

She noted that he still relied heavily on strength and reach of his arm rather than agility or speed or even instinct. That aside, Trinity realized he had no experience against fighters like her, because he was not able to predict many of her next moves.

His hand-to-hand combat was profoundly reminiscent of a soldier in battle, and she accounted that for being trained by a battle hardened warrior like Mario. Ezio did manage to elbow Trinity squarely in the face, gaining him a loud cheer of approval from the audience.

It caught her off guard, but she was quick to fire back with a blow with her blunted sword to his chest and landing a good, solid punch to his face. The audience also roared with noise at this. She was all about "eye-for-an-eye." If Ezio was going to hit her dead in the face, than she had no problem reciprocating.

Trinity was slightly pleased with him though; she appreciated that he did not treat her any different merely for the fact that she was a woman.

The anger in Ezio's light eyes were growing steadily. He knew he was going to lose…and more than that, he knew that Trinity was holding back somewhat. She was just too fast for him; he had never encountered such speed and skill before. He could only account her ability for the fact that she had more experience than he did.

Trinity parried yet another blow before spinning around him gracefully and bringing her sword around to hit Ezio in the lower back. He stumbled forward, catching himself on the wall and his back aching from the blow. Some of the mercenaries cheered him on, clapping him on the shoulders, and turning him around to face Trinity.

She grinned almost darkly at him, motioning for him to come to her.

In his fury, he rushed her, swinging his sword above his head almost madly. Trinity raised her own sword up to block the blow, Ezio's blade crashing down on hers.

He pressed all his weight down onto his sword, causing her knees to buckle slightly as she pushed back with hers; he was definitely strong. She was smirking up at him, their faces close.

"Did you honestly think you were going to best me, Ezio?" she whispered in a mocking tone.

Ezio made a noise of anger as a reply before she thrust him off her to regain her defensive stance. He was too quick though and caught her sword with his, sending it flying from her hand and to the floor. The crowd's noise level spiked in approval.

Trinity, now disarmed, raised her hands up, not giving in despite her being without a weapon. She didn't look the least bit concerned that she had lost her sword and that indifferent expression only angered Ezio further.

"You have no weapon!" cried Ezio triumphantly. "You will surely lose now."

She laughed. "Try me."

Ezio snorted, now looking arrogant. "Fine," he half-spat. "Have it your way."

They circled each other again for a moment before Ezio took another swing, wanting to get the duel over with because he was looking forward to celebrating his win and rubbing it in her face for years to come.

She easily dodged the blade, as if it were nothing, and quickly grasped his sword arm with both her hands. The moment her hands were upon his arm, she twisted his wrist backwards slightly, causing him to yell out in pain and drop the sword because his grip was compromised.

She swiftly and fluidly swept her foot under his legs, forcing his feet out from under him. Ezio's back immediately hit the ground, taking the breath out of him, and instantly, Trinity had him pinned with one of her knees on his arm. Her left hand was pressed on his chest with her weight behind it to keep him still while her hidden blade's point was directed at his neck.

All who had been watching burst into applause at the obvious win.

Trinity stared down at him, her face surprisingly void of any sort of expression. She was slightly out of breath and sweat forming on her face. Ezio was panting heavily and glared up at her, his pride severely injured that he had been bested by her in front of the majority of the city.

His uncle would surely work him to death for this.

"You were saying…?" she said in dark amusement. Trinity retracted her blade and released her hold him before rising to a stand.

She offered a hand to him but Ezio ignored it and stood up himself. She rolled her eyes at his childish behavior.

"Good effort," said Trinity sincerely, still holding out her hand for him to shake. He eyed it with all the detest he was capable of. But his eyes caught Mario's expression of caution so Ezio grasped her hand bitterly, and shook it.

Needless to say, he was furious. He would never hear the end of this; he was sure of it. Not only would Trinity continually take stabs at his apparent lack of ability but there was now the possibility of the entire city doing the same.

Trinity, however, was thoroughly enjoying the idea that she punctured his exceedingly inflated ego to get it to be a normal size. Ezio had been far too overconfident in his abilities, and because of that, he had been brash and compulsive in his fighting.

It also made his loss that much harder for him to handle.

Granted he had faired much longer and did much better than their first duel. Trinity had him on the ground within six minutes the first time…it took over twenty the second time around.

He still needed a lot of work though. His lack of speed, and more importantly, endurance, was troubling. Ezio had gotten tired relatively quickly within the fight. In the real world, he would not last if he couldn't hold his own and be able to make an escape.

Trinity realized she needed to start training Ezio herself.

* * *

><p>Ezio felt the covers being wrenched away from his body very abruptly, leaving him cold, and it was accompanied by a very stern, "Get up."<p>

Bleary eyed, he found Trinity in the semi-darkness, standing over him with hands on her hips and her face within a foot of his.

He immediately cursed to high heaven and rolled back over so his back was facing her; she was the _last_ person he wanted to see this early in the morning.

"Charming," Trinity said sarcastically when his string of profanity was finished.

"Get out," he grumbled into his pillow.

She chuckled, a dark tone prevalent. "Oh, look at this," she said sounding almost playful, poking at his left side where a large, dark bruise had formed. He jerked from the pain and automatically slapped her hand away. "Looks painful…. Oh, look, it's not the only one! There's one here…and here…and _here._"

Trinity was poking all the visible bruises that he had across his back, arms, and legs, causing Ezio to grow more and more irritated with each passing second. She was messing with him and he was going to strangle her for it.

"Although…I don't remember inflicting this one on your ass…" she said thoughtfully but without prodding the bruise. At the statement, Ezio's eyes shot open. "I didn't know you were into such rough sex, Ezio. Perhaps you should tone it down a bit."

That's right…he always slept naked.

"_Get out!" _he snapped, sitting up to glare at her. She immediately turned her head away, not wanting to see anything of his lower region now that he was facing her.

"Fine, fine," she replied airily as she walked away. Trinity picked up his clothes on the dresser and tossed them at him. "Get dressed then. You've got five minutes."

And she shut the door.

Five minutes of being awake and Ezio was already seething in anger. _Five minutes. _He was sure that he was going to kill her one of these days, it was going to happen…and no one would be able to stop him.

He stood up and everywhere in his body ached, more than it had in a long time. Trying to put on his breeches proved to be a difficult task as he nearly fell over from being so stiff.

Ezio pulled back the curtains to his window and groaned. There was hardly any light in the sky, which meant it was early morning.

_The hell does she want me up at the crack of dawn for, _he thought irritably. Ezio pulled on his shirt and then his boots before opening his bedroom door.

He left the hallways, wondering where Trinity had gone. He had resolved that if he didn't find he within the next two minutes, he was going straight back to bed.

Unfortunately, he found her at the bottom of the stairs of the foyer, standing idly. She wasn't wearing her robes today but only attire similar to his.

"Good," she said when she saw him. "I was mulling over what I was going to do to you if you had gone back to sleep."

He scowled at her.

"The sun hasn't even risen yet," he grumbled as he eased his way down the stairs. "Why did you wake me up so early, monello _(brat)?"_

Trinity eyed him, a little amused at the usage of "brat" and his tone. "Mario trained you well," she replied, making towards the door to outside. "But he has been relaxed in some areas. Now that I'm back, you'll be under my supervision."

"Joy…" said Ezio sarcastically, following her out.

His ego still was highly bruised from yesterday's duel. He didn't want to admit it but having lost to her after gained so much skill…was hard for him to wrap his head around. Trinity had made it look so easy…and because of her casual attitude throughout the fight, he felt his detestation for her grow a little more.

Trinity led him to the city's battlements, one that required him to climb and stretch out his stiff muscles. It took him longer than normal to climb up onto the roofs of the city before taking the ladder to the top of said battlements, but thankfully, Trinity did not hurry him.

"What are we doing…?" he asked in a monotone. By now, there was a little more light in the sky, enough for some of Mario's guards to douse out the torches that were lighting the top of the ramparts.

"You lack endurance," Trinity replied flatly. "It's pathetic."

Ezio threw a half-hearted death glare at her. "Don't start with me, Trinity, I'm-"

"Zitto _(shut up)," _she interjected just as annoyed. "Start running."

Ezio looked at her as if she had lost her mind. He glanced around at the battlements. It wasn't even remotely impossible for him to run the entire thing without stopping but he was sore and tired…and irritated.

"This is ridiculous-!"

Trinity shoved him forward. "Corri _(run)!" _she ordered.

He grudgingly did, though he started slow because he was aching. Ezio couldn't believe his uncle allowed her to take over training. He could already tell that she was hell bent on killing him.

Half way around the ramparts, Trinity suddenly appeared, running ahead of him.

"Andiamo _(c'mon)!" _she called over her shoulder. "My dead father can run faster than you!"

Ezio glowered at the fall of her black hair trailing behind her.

They went around the battlements in its entirety seven times without stopping before Trinity let him take a breather. The whole way around, she taunted him, yelling out insults in quick succession about how he was getting fat or how can any woman stand to be in the same bed as him if his stamina was at such a pathetic state.

Ezio did his best to remain silent and just keep running but by the six time around, he was shouting after her, having lost all his patience.

"Let's make a bet…" said Trinity as Ezio was doubled over, panting next to her. He glanced up at her with his light eyes, looking pissed.

He stood up straighter. "What kind of bet…?" he asked.

She smirked darkly, standing with her back against the wall of the rampart. "Something that'll keep you focused, like a goal for you to aim for," replied Trinity, eyes glinting mischievously.

Her attitude was a little strange today, Ezio noticed. Yes, she was insulting him at every possible moment, as she always does, but today it wasn't quite as spiteful as it was lighthearted. He couldn't quite understand where it was stemming from but it was really aggravating him nonetheless.

"Alright…" said Ezio so she would continue.

Her eyes narrowed and her smirk went wider. "If you can best me in a duel," began Trinity, "…if you can somehow manage to beat me in a fight, Ezio Auditore…I will spend that night with you in bed…and you can have your way with me."

Ezio's eyebrow rose in interest, surprised that she had even suggested such a thing.

"That is my bet."

He couldn't help but laugh. "Really?" he said in an indifferent tone. "I don't know if I want to agree to that…who says you'll be any good in bed?"

At this, she glared at him for a flash of a second.

"Is it because you know you'll never beat me that you say this?" she mocked, crossing her arms with a victorious expression.

Trinity had all the confidence in the world that Ezio would never beat her in a duel and that is the only reason why she suggested spreading her legs for him "if" he did. But she wanted him to find his focus, to strive for something so he would willingly better his abilities instead of her having to push him for it.

He scoffed, smiling slyly at her.

Ezio stepped towards her and placed his fingers under chin to lift her head up slightly. His left hand was up against the wall behind her while his body brushed up against her lightly. She did not look disturbed by his sudden proximity to her but only held the darkest of eyes at him while her arms were still crossed.

"I will best you in a duel, Trinity Aldinucci," he said, putting on his most seductive voice. "And you will regret ever having suggesting such high stakes as letting me have you for one night…for I will not let you sleep."

She rolled her eyes at him, not impressed with his claim.

Ezio dropped his hand and turned away from her, his resolve hardening to steel. If Trinity was going to risk something she found so repulsive, he was going to make her wish she had never thought of it.

His hatred for her was his fuel for his fire.


	11. Attack on San Gimignano

**I don't own Assassin's Creed, all credits to Ubisoft for this amazing series!**

**Please enjoy the next chapter! I hope you all are liking the story. Already chapter ten and we haven't even killed the snake Vieri. ahaha, anyways, not much to say. xoxo other than thank you for all the subscribers and reviewers. yOu guys rock and I'm so happy to have people reading this. **

Chapter Ten: Attack on San Gimignano

Mario hovered over his desk, looking over maps of Tuscany and more specifically, San Gimignano, as he had been for the last few weeks now. Because Trinity was now training Ezio, he had much more free time to work on his plans to invade San Gimignano.

"May I come in?" asked Trinity, head peering around the open archway to his study from outside.

The elder Auditore looked up at her and smiled. "Of course, of course," he said airily, waving for her to enter. Trinity smiled and strolled in. "Did you give Ezio a day off?"

She snorted. "No," she replied shamelessly. "He's out running the ramparts right now."

Mario laughed lightly.

Trinity had been pushing Ezio much harder than he ever did for a little over seven months. Not only did she work on fine-tuning Ezio's combat skills, but she helped him build up a strong stamina, perfect the art of stealth, and free-run even quicker than he had before. Ezio's dexterity has increased immensely, as well as his overall speed. These were things that Mario would never be able to train Ezio in because though he was part of the assassin line, Mario wasn't much for stealth and free-running as his younger brother had been.

Mario had noticed that Ezio had been putting far more effort into his training while working with Trinity too. Mario knew why though; he was perfectly aware of the bet placed between them and what the prize entailed.

Speaking of the bet, Ezio had yet to win a duel thus far. Recently, he's been closer…but he always lost to Trinity in the end. Mario had the distinct impression that Trinity would toy with Ezio, letting him think that he had some sort of chance…only to catch Ezio off guard and take the win at the last moment.

Ezio never lost hope though, as he continuously challenged her to duels nearly every day. Mario always oversaw each duel because they wanted a fair judge to make sure the other wasn't cheating. He had lost count of how many duels he had watched in the past seven months. There were only a handful of times that the end result was a standoff between the two…but that was not winning, and therefore Ezio could not claim his prize.

The pair's relationship had neither worsened or improved either in the last several months. Though Ezio was nearly two decades old and Trinity being one who has been alive for eighteen springs, the two teenagers still were at each others' throats day in and day out, acting like small children. At this point, the entire city learned to ignore their shouting matches, be it on the battlements in the early hours of the morning, throughout the streets while they were practicing free-running, or during meal times in the villa. Needless to say, no one paid much attention to their bickering, though if someone did, neither of them would have ever noticed.

Mario was actually impressed with the array of insults they had for each other; he frequently heard many new ones every week that passed. Though it was generally amusing to watch them, he vaguely wondered when they were going to outgrow this phase of their friendship.

He couldn't help but chuckle.

If he had said they were friends to their faces, one of them (and he didn't know which, if not both) would slit his throat for even suggesting such a thing.

"So if Ezio is running the battlements," said Mario to make conversation, "what are _you_ doing?"

Trinity glanced around for a moment before dropping her voice. "Hiding from Claudia," she whispered, her eyes darting back to the archway. "If she finds me standing around idly, she has the tendency to push chores on me."

Mario laughed, knowing all to well what she was talking about.

"But when I do the chores she forces me to do, I still get yelled at because I didn't do it _her _way," joked Trinity.

"You have to give her credit though," said Mario. "She does keep the place clean."

Trinity agreed, rolling her eyes, before she glanced at the large parchments on his desk. "Mario," she said hesitantly, "I've noticed you've been pouring over these maps for months now…but I can't figure out why…"

The Auditore took a moment to let his dark eyes search the room like she had.

"I am planning an attack on San Gimignano," he replied quietly. "I haven't told Ezio yet. I don't want him getting distracted from your training."

Trinity raised an eyebrow in confusion. "An attack?" she asked. "Perché _(why)_?"

Mario growled contemptuously. "That succiacazzi _(cocksucker) _Vieri de' Pazzi has been harassing the damn city for the last two years," he said irritably. "And I've had just about enough of his ill attempts to overtake Monterriggioni."

Trinity made a noise of indignation. "So, that bastardo survived…" she sighed to herself, causing Mario to eye her curiously.

"Did someone try to kill him?" he asked.

"Yeah…" she growled contemptuously, her eyes darkening a shade. "_I did_…right after I left Monterriggioni."

Mario looked like he was taken aback by this news. "Really…?" he said thoughtfully. "I was never informed that he had been attacked. He kept it quiet."

Trinity smirked to herself, knowing that Vieri would probably have thrown a hissy fit if someone had spoken of the incident between them; Vieri wouldn't have wanted the news to get out because it would have shown that he was weak. She relayed the story quickly to Mario so he understood what she was talking about.

Mario roared with laughter at the idea of Vieri being confronted by an assassin in mid-thrust…and that assassin being female, no less.

"That boy has bad luck!" he exclaimed, clearly amused.

Trinity felt herself smile.

"Although," she said in realization, "perhaps that's why he has been attacking Monterriggioni so often. Vieri assumed that I had still resided here and wanted to get revenge for my attack on him. Mi dispiace, Mario…. I didn't realize the repercussions would be so large if he had survived."

Mario shook his head dismissively. "Don't apologize," he replied, unconcerned. "It's not your fault. Vieri would have mounted attacks on us even if you hadn't. My guess is his main objective is to kill Ezio, since Ezio was supposed to have been hanged with the rest of his family, not escape Firenze, and death entirely. Your assault on Vieri only fueled him."

He had a point.

"When will you be invading San Gimignano?" Trinity asked after a moment.

Mario was thoughtful.

"Sooner than later, giovane _(young one)_," he admitted. "I've been gathering my men together and modifying my battle plans before I head out."

"Time estimate?" she pressed.

"No more than two weeks…at most," he replied gravely. "But I'm pushing for a week, if I can."

Trinity smiled, her own mind turning. "Bene," she said, patting him on the shoulder. "A week is perfect."

Mario was confused as to what she meant by that. "Eh? And why is that" he asked the young assassin.

Trinity had been walking away to leave the room when she cast a bright smile back at him, her eyes gentle but showing she was pleased about something.

"Because Ezio is no longer in need of anymore training."

* * *

><p>Ezio panted heavily as his uncle and Trinity circled him like sharks with swords drawn. His eyes darted from each of his opponents, waiting for one of them to make an indication that they were about to strike.<p>

He felt them both move simultaneously, both swinging their blunted swords at him, Trinity in front, and Mario behind him. Ezio quickly dove to his right, avoiding the swings by half a foot. Trinity and Mario's sword clashed together now that Ezio was not standing where he had been.

The day before, Trinity had arbitrarily told Ezio at dinner that he was to have a fight with his uncle and her the next afternoon. Ezio had been confused to this, as she also said that she was letting him have the day to himself until said fight

Trinity _never _in the last seven months let him have the day off. Yes, some days were far easier in training then others, but had not been able to sleep in since the day she returned to Monterriggioni. However, she had told him that he was finished with his training, that there was nothing more that she could teach him. The last test he had was to see if he could hold his own against Mario and her, and then he would truly be done with everything.

Presently, Ezio was fairing quite well in his fight. Both Trinity and Mario had been able to get a few hits on him, but very few…and Ezio in turn, was able to return the favor to both of them. They had been fighting for the last ten minutes or so, which doesn't seem like a long fight at all but the majority of the time, there was always a winner within the first six minutes.

Trinity and Mario glanced at each other before lowering their swords, signaling the mercenary that was watching the fight to call the end of it. Ezio eyed them, confused as to why they were letting their guard down.

"Ben fatto, nipote _(well done, nephew)!" _said Mario, beaming at Ezio. "You've really come into your own."

Ezio lowered his sword and smiled a little. "Thank you, uncle," he said, walking over to him and putting a hand at his shoulder, "for all you have given me."

"You're family," replied his uncle. "Such is my duty and my desire."

Trinity, who was standing beside them, cleared her throat purposefully. "You're forgetting someone," she said teasingly with an expectant look.

Ezio smiled slyly. "And grazie to you too, monello _(brat)," _he replied, using the nickname he had been calling her for the last few months. "If it wasn't for you putting me through Hell and back, I would not be where I am today."

He held out a hand for her, and she shook it. "Damn right," she said with a smirk.

Her counterpart laughed dryly. "I will beat you in a duel…"

Trinity waved him off dismissively. "Yes, yes," she replied airily. "You've said this many times already."

Mario, however, was eying them. "I'm impressed," he said, causing the two of them to look over at him with confusion. "I think this is the first time I've seen you two have a conversation with out arguing."

"E 'ancora stupido _(He's still stupid)," _said Trinity indifferently, promptly punching Ezio in the arm while she looked at Mario.

"E lei è ancora fastidioso _(And she's still annoying)," _finished Ezio, pushing Trinity roughly to the point that she nearly fell over.

At this, they both started to bicker about who is more aggravating than the other, causing Mario to smile to himself, though unnoticed.

"Children…" he sighed after a minute. They abruptly stopped arguing, hearing the tone in their elder's voice.

"Anyways," said Ezio, throwing a dark glare at Trinity for a second. "I'm glad you had me stay."

"Good! You're reconsidered leaving!" exclaimed Mario, looking pleased.

Ezio immediately felt the guilt rise in his throat and he turned away from his trainers' gazes. He didn't care what Trinity thought…but his uncle would be upset, he was sure.

"…We sail for Spain," said Ezio slowly, turning back to look Mario in the eye, "in three days."

Ezio had arranged all of this that morning, having told Claudia and his mother that he was finishing his training today. Claudia had been very excited about this, never having been thrilled about staying in Monterriggioni for so long. Maria, as expected, was silent on the subject, though her body reaction did not tell what she thought of either situation.

Mario stared at Ezio for a second, whereas Trinity's expression looked a little more irritated than shocked.

"But nipote," said Mario, stepping towards him and trying to remain calm. "Trinity and I have given these skills that you might be better prepared to strike against our enemies…"

"And if they find me, I will," said Ezio firmly.

Trinity scoffed and crossed her arms behind Mario, her demeanor displaying that she was only growing more furious as the seconds passed.

"You want to leave, Ezio?" snapped his uncle, his battle scarred face hardening in his anger. "To throw away everything your father fought and _died _for?"

More guilt. "Uncle-" Ezio tried to cut in.

"To _deny _your heritage?" pressed Mario over Ezio in a hard tone. "Fine! Come vuoi. Arriverderci e buona fortuna _(So be it. Good-bye and good luck.)_"

Mario turned on his heel and stalked away up towards the villa in his sudden rage.

"Uncle, wait!" Ezio called in confusion, but Mario ignored him. His eyes caught the dark look that Trinity was giving him.

It was clear that she was also angry…but more disappointed in him than anything. In all honesty, Ezio did not like the way she was gazing at him.

"Arrivederci, Ezio," she said, dropping her arms before she started to turn away from him. "Il percorso si può camminare al sicuro _(May the path you walk be safe.)"_

She paused before she turned her back to him and walked away. Trinity leapt over the wall that made the fighting ring and followed Mario up towards the villa, leaving Ezio standing there with the mercenary in utter mystification.

"I don't understand," said Ezio to him. "Why are they so upset?"

The mercenary shrugged indifferently. "How can he not be?" he said, glancing up at the pair disappearing into the villa. "Vieri's been harassing us ever since you two first arrived."

Ezio was taken aback by this news.

"To be expected, I suppose," continued the mercenary, not noticing Ezio's contemplative look. "Given his heritage."

The young assassin lowered his eyes to the floor for a moment, unsure of what he should do.

* * *

><p>Trinity rubbed her right temple to relieve her slight headache as Mario still continued to growl and complain about his nephew's stupidity for the last two hours.<p>

"I _did_ say he was stupid," she replied idly, not paying much attention anymore to what he was saying.

The had just set across Tuscany as she, Mario, and a handful of his men were waiting in a small little village outside San Gimignano. They had ridden out of Monterriggioni after their fight with Ezio, having been planning the attack on Vieri for the last two weeks.

Trinity understood that Mario was hurt by Ezio's decision to run off to Spain, and granted, she was also angered by this herself, seeing that she felt like she has wasted the last seven months of her life training the idiot. She could have spent her time tending to her own problems than have spent it on Ezio.

She shook her head. _Stronzo, _she cursed him.

As she walked around the temporary camp, she went about ordering the men to ready their weapons and armor while Mario and her went over battle plans on invading the city. The men agreed, setting about sharpening their swords and axes and checking their armor to make sure there were no defects.

Vieri's scouts had seen them coming and sealed all the gates to the city, having his guard watch the entrances to each of them. Trinity and Mario had sent scouts of their own, to see which gate was weakest so that she could open it from inside.

By the time the moon was high in the sky, signaling that it was late, more men had arrived from Monterriggioni at the camp.

"Pronti _(Ready?)" _asked Trinity to Mario once she had generally checked everyone's weapons.

Mario opened his mouth to reply but he was cut off by a set of hooves that came through the camp. Trinity and Mario looked over, finding Ezio climbing off a white mare and approaching them.

Somehow, Trinity was unsurprised of his appearance and smiled to herself.

"Ezio?" said Mario surprised, though wary. "What are you doing here?"

"Taking responsibility," said Ezio firmly once he was close enough to them. "Vieri troubles you because of me."

Trinity and Mario laughed darkly at this statement.

"Vieri troubles us because he is a Templar and we are Assassins," clarified Trinity, walking up from behind Mario.

"Either way," said Ezio, glancing at her, "I wish to help."

He saw the look of appreciation that the both of them held. "Va bene _(alright), _then listen closely," said Mario, bringing Ezio over to the map of San Gimignano. "First, we must find a way into the city…thought we have been informed that Vieri is expecting us…. He has sealed the gates and sent his men to guard them."

"Fortunately for us, the city is larger than his host. The southern gate suffers for it," said Trinity, pointing on the map to show Ezio what she was talking about. "So, that's where we will strike."

After a few more minutes of discussion, and rallying the men, they were ready to move out and execute their attack.

They ran about quarter of a mile around the San Gimignano walls silently, Mario in the lead. His men, Trinity, and Ezio followed obediently, making every effort to skirt any guards they saw.

"He is pleased…" said Trinity quietly as she ran alongside Ezio. He looked over at her for a second.

"Who…? Uncle Mario?"

He saw her smile under her hood. "He's happy you have come to help us."

Ezio made to reply but Mario had stopped, the southern gate coming into their view. Ezio and Trinity, as well as the others, all slowed to a stop as well.

There was a large pile of crates against the city wall and above it, bricks had fallen and decayed, leaving an opening for them to climb to.

"Alright, Ezio, this is how it's going to work," said Mario, turning to him and Trinity. "My men and I will distract the guards. Once we have engaged them, get yourself over the wall and find a way to open the gate."

"I'm ready when you are, uncle," said Ezio.

"Here," said Trinity, handing him four small knives. He eyed them, confused. "Take these throwing knives and use them to dispatch the archers guarding the gate. One dagger should be enough unless they have on armor."

Ezio nodded. "And you?" he asked her. "You're coming with me?"

She smirked at the statement. "You're an Assassin now, Ezio," Trinity replied. "You don't need me to babysit you anymore."

He glowered at her under the shadow of his hood as she jogged away with Mario and his mercenaries.

Even before battle, Trinity had the audacity to mock him.

Once they rounded the bend towards the gate, Ezio heard Mario yell out a battle cry for his men to begin the attack. Within a minute, there was a massive amount of noise of metal ringing against each other and shouting from the men.

Ezio climbed the ramparts of the city by means of the crates and easily hoisted himself up onto the wall. Immediately, he saw an archer standing on a roof across the way, bow ready and pointing towards the gate.

Since the archer was in throwing distance, Ezio gripped one of his throwing knives that Trinity had just given him just as the archer saw him.

Ezio threw the knife and dug itself into the chest of the guard, causing him to drop to his knees from the force of the throw and fall off the roof to his death. Thankfully it was already late, and the majority of the townspeople were already in their homes asleep, so he did not attract any attention.

The young assassin quickly dispatched the other two archers on the roofs before he saw the pulley system that would open the south gate. Ezio leapt off a low roof, landing on the street below with a roll to a stand.

He sprinted over to the lever, seeing a flash of white out in the midst of the fighting. Of course, Trinity preferred being in the middle of action then to be doing any sort of stealth work.

It took a minute to get the gate open and Ezio immediately unsheathed his sword to help finish off the rest of the guards.

There were about seven of them left and the majority of them injured. Though he had withdrew his sword, there were more than enough mercenaries to take care of the rest of the San Gimignano guards and he felt he might be in the way more than helping.

He noticed Trinity, fighting off two guards with her twin daggers. There were another couple mercenaries around to help her, but they already knew that she had them covered.

Trinity, as expected because she was female, was fluid in her movements, almost graceful. It appeared to be more of a dance to her than a fight. Comparing her to Mario, who had heavy swings and wasn't quite so lithe, she made fighting look easy.

"Are you just going to stand around, idiota?" she called to him with an amused voice when she noticed him. Trinity ducked a swing from the guard behind her and slashed at his throat as she came back up.

"I wasn't aware you were in need of my help, monello!" Ezio shouted back, running to her last guard and stabbing him through the back with his sword.

She flashed him a sly smile but didn't reply as she dashed to the next guard.

After another minute, they finished them all off and Mario approached the gate.

"Well done, Ezio," he said. "We're in! This way, men."

They all ran past the gate into the courtyard after it. There were no civilians around and was quiet as they moved further into San Gimignano.

Trinity quickly ascended the buildings to scout out patrols, signaling two on the ends of the street. They were easily dealt with and thus the alarm was not raised that city was under attack.

There were about ten guards up the street and Mario stopped all of them.

"Ezio, distract those guards and keep them from raising the alarm," he ordered just as Trinity leapt down to join them. "Hopefully, it will buy me enough time to find and silence Vieri."

"Va bene," said Ezio, beginning to walk towards them.

"Wait, grullo _(stupid)," _said Trinity, gripping his collar to halt him. "I'm going with you. You may be a better fighter now, but let's not jump into a fray so eagerly."

Ezio didn't object, and neither did Mario.

His uncle took his men down a side street, around the guards, leaving the two assassins behind.

"Pronti _(Ready)?" _she asked, eying the guards far up the street. Ezio smirked at her.

"Andiamo _(Let's go)," _he replied, running up a side of a building and reaching for the roof. Trinity smirked as well and followed after him.


	12. Rispetto

**Ubisoft own Assassin's Creed. All credits goes to them, including characters and plot. I only claim my OCs and minor plot changes.**

**Here is the next chapter everyone! Thank you so much for all those who subscribe, put this story into favorites, and/or review. It means a lot to me, seriously. I hope that this story will be able to break a hundred reviews...I will throw a damn party if that happens. Anyways, if there is any grammatical errors or spelling mistakes, I'm sorry I didn't edit this too much. Happy reading! Lemme know what you think! All types of reviews are welcome and encouraged! Arrivederci!**

Chapter Eleven: Rispetto _(Respect)_

"Once we've dealt with these guards," whispered Trinity as she and Ezio quickly traversed the roof to get to the guards Mario had sent to them to kill, "we have to rejoin Mario. Alright?"

"Alright," he breathed, peering over the roof. They were just above the ten guards who were talking amongst themselves.

"What's Vieri up to now?" one of them growled, clearly irritated.

The one he was speaking to shrugged. "No one knows," he replied. "But something has him on edge. How else would you explain all the patrols he's demanded?"

Ezio was pointing and making hand gestures, trying to enforce a tactical plan without saying a word. Trinity, however, could not, for the life of her, understand his motions and stared blankly at him in confusion.

"_What?__" _she hissed, perplexed with the elaborate moves.

"We're meant to be soldiers," a third guard said below. "Instead, he's turned us into nursemaids. And why?"

The second guard who had spoken, who seemed the most neutral, scratched the back of his head. "Shooting his mouth off again, no doubt," he replied indifferently. "Angering the wrong sorts of people…. And so now, we pay the price."

Trinity had just about enough of Ezio's ill attempts to motion for her to attack which guards and stood up from her crouched position. Before he could stop her, she leapt down from the building, slamming her hidden blade into one of the guards' necks and rolling off him once he hit the floor.

Ezio groaned as she unsheathed her two favorite weapons, her twin daggers, and engaged the nine other guards.

_Why doesn't she ever listen!_

"Come now," she goaded when none of her opposition made to attack her. "I'm only one woman. Don't be afraid."

This incited an immediate attack from one of the guards on her right, which Trinity easily counterattacked and gutting him instantly. This outraged the rest of the guards and they were provoked enough to attack her.

Ezio threw his last throwing knife, incapacitating one of the guards before he leapt from the roof as well. They pressed their backs gently against each other, making sure that the other had cover as Ezio withdrew his sword.

Now that he was there, they could easily tend to four guards to themselves without difficulty. Trinity and Ezio were able to use each other for another set of eyes, calling out to one another when the other was about to be hit with a sword or mace behind their backs.

Within minutes, they had killed all ten guards.

"Nice work," breathed Trinity, blood splattered across her front. "Though I did see one of them got a good hit to your face."

Ezio heard the amusement in her tone and spat to the side, a small amount of his blood hitting the floor. One of the last two guards he had taken care of managed to land a punch to his jaw, causing Ezio to bite down on the inside of his cheek.

"Chiudere…_(shut__ up)_" he said without much feeling behind it, sheathing his sword. She felt herself grin for a moment, though unnoticed by him.

"Come," said Trinity, sheathing her daggers and running up the steps of the street. "We must catch up to Mario."

It seemed like she knew where she was going, which surprised Ezio vaguely. He wondered if she had visited here when she was away for a year.

There was more sounds of the clashing of metal up ahead and they came upon a group of San Gimignano guards trying to fend off a few of Mario's mercenaries.

The two assassins quickly jumped into action, aiding the others in defeating the last of the guards.

"Ezio!" cried one of them, causing the pair to turn around to find where the voice was coming from.

One of the mercenaries was leaning up against the well, hand over his bleeding wound to the stomach. Trinity rushed quickly to him and knelt down to take a look at it.

"Your uncle's under attack and needs help! Go to him!" he gasped as Trinity lifted his hand. The wound was deep and still bleeding quite profusely. She motioned for one of the other mercenaries to come to her.

"Keep your hand here to stem the flow of blood," she instructed him. "He needs aid quickly otherwise he may bleed out. Do you understand me?"

The mercenary nodded and Trinity rose up.

"Andiamo!" said Ezio quickly, dashing where the mercenary had directed them. Trinity was hot on his trail as they rounded a few corners.

It was easily discernable that there was a massive amount of fighting not that far up ahead of them. Trinity braced herself for the worst, just as they rounded a final corner that opened up into a large courtyard in front of the main church of the city.

Both Trinity and Ezio stopped in their tracks. "Holy shit…" Ezio whispered.

In front of them were…he couldn't even estimate well enough…maybe a seventy or so men, the majority of them the guards of the city fighting against Mario's men. There were so many guards…it was overwhelming to look at all the opposition against them. His heart sank a little, having no idea where to begin.

Trinity clapped Ezio on the back and laughed lightly.

"Don't be such a bambino _(baby)_, Ezio!" she teased, her smile peeking out through the shadows of her hood. She dashed towards the fray, kicking a sword from a guard's hand and slamming her hidden blade into the back of his neck. "Look at this as practice! You need it!"

Ezio rolled his eyes, though an amused smirk crossed his face momentarily. She always had to provoke him, didn't she? He quickly followed after Trinity, targeting a group of guards that were around the well in the middle of the courtyard.

He had killed about five of them when he saw his uncle pass though his field of vision.

"Uncle!" called Ezio, parrying a lunge to his chest and punching the guard in the face. Mario looked over from his own fight with five guards and grinned.

"Ah, nipote, there you are!" Mario yelled back, slaying another guard only for his place to be taken by another. "It seems my plan has hit something of a snag."

Trinity, who had leapt up and over the well lithely to bring her daggers down to a guard who very nearly made mince meat of Ezio, snorted. "Clearly!" she said, chuckling as she continued to deal with the guards that now surrounded her.

Mario laughed as well. Ezio wasn't quite sure these two kept laughing because he didn't see this situation as something that was particularly amusing. Their lives were at risk right now! Why the hell were they acting so nonchalant about the fact that they were highly outnumbered.

"Vieri's men ambushed us," continued the elder Auditore, kicking a guard away from him so he could easily pull out his sword from his body, "and now we've got our hands full."

Ezio ducked a swing before he stabbed his sword straight into the eye of the guard who just made an attack at him.

"There's nothing to worry about," said Trinity next to Ezio in a casual tone. "We'll finish them off."

"No, my brothers and I will deal with these guards," said Mario, a firmer tone in his voice. "You two must go on ahead and root out that snake! See that justice is done!"

"With pleasure!" Trinity replied boisterously.

She slashed in an x formation at the guard in front of her before throwing her dagger at the man Ezio was attempting to deal with. When the guard fell to the floor, clutching the dagger at his chest, Ezio looked up at her.

"Hey, that was my kill!" he exclaimed with irritation. Trinity didn't reply and ran past him, wrenching out her dagger in the process.

"Dai, grullo _(come__ on, __stupid),_" she said over her shoulder. Ezio exhaled heavily, trying to keep his temper in check. Again with the goading. Apparently, it didn't matter what situation they were in because she still found every opportunity to harass him or call him names.

"Monello _(brat)_…" he grumbled, making her chuckle again.

Trinity and Ezio navigated San Gimignano silently, avoiding as many guards as they could so they didn't have to keep fighting every one they passed. They mostly took towards the roof as they headed to the northern gate. Trinity hoped they would find Vieri soon because it was getting late into the night. Morning would be arriving soon.

She climbed up another roof for a higher vantage point when she saw the gate they were looking for. Ezio quickly joined her.

"What are we-?"

"Shush," Trinity said while throwing out a hand to silence him. Ezio glowered, not liking that he was just told to "shush."

There were a handful of guards at the front of the gate when four figures came through. One was easily recognizable…the bastard Vieri with his idiotic beret. What was presumably his father, with a full beard and longer hair also had the same sort of hat, was also with Vieri. There was another man, much older looking, even from this distance, in fancy robes, signifying his high rank. There also was a heavier set man, one of reddish-brown tinge.

"There's Vieri…" she whispered, going into a crouch.

Ezio eyed her. "Let's go now!" he hissed. "We'll catch him them off guard."

"No," snapped Trinity, not favoring him with a glance. "They may reveal information we need. We wait."

Ezio growled underneath his breath and crossed his arms, watching the unfolding scene with impatience.

"It's settled," said the heavier set man as the four of them stopped just as they passed the gate. Trinity froze.

That voice.

_It__ cannot __be__…_ she thought incredulously. Was this the man she had spent a year trying to track down?

"Vieri, you will remain here to coordinate the merceneri _(mercenaries)_," continued the man in the robes. He had a slight accent, one indicating he was not from Italy. "Francesco will organizes our forces in the city and send word when it's time to strike."

It had to be him. It sounded just like him. If only she could see his face…just to confirm…but his back was facing her and Ezio while he spoke to the other three.

Trinity could feel it. The rage…the pain…everything that she had bottled up for so long within her came rushing forth like a tidal wave. She started to shake, yet immobilized by her realization.

"Jacapo, your job is to calm the citizens once the deed is done," the robed man finished.

"What of that ubriacone _(drunkard),_Mario?" whined Vieri to the man. "He continues to harass my forces and I fear he'll discover what we intend."

"He's always been trouble," added Vieri's father. "Just like that bastardo brother of his."

Vieri looked at Francesco with a desperate look. "Then let me reunite them, father!" he pleaded. Even from here, Ezio could see the semi-disgusted look on Francesco's face at his son's tone.

"There will be plenty of time to clean up the rifuiti _(trash)_ when we're finished," assured the robed man firmly, putting a hand on Vieri's shoulder. "Now, is there anything else…?"

The other three were silent.

"Muy bien," he said, only solidifying Trinity's thoughts that this was the man she was searching for. "May the Father of Understanding guide you."

"May the Father of Understanding guide you," the three repeated back, all of them with their hands at their hearts and head's bowed.

Trinity didn't care if it wasn't him…it was close enough for her and she was going to kill that man…the man who murdered her family.

She stood up quickly, ready to tail them, having no concern now with Vieri.

"I'll kill him!" she shouted without thinking, her rage blinding her.

Instinctively, Ezio gripped her upper arm and yanked her to the floor of the roof with him, dropping them out of sight as the four men they had eavesdropped on looked up in their direction. Luckily, the positioning of the roof and the shadows hid them well enough for the four men to brush it off.

After a moment of remaining still, where Ezio was lying on top of Trinity, he lifted his head up to see if they had gone.

Vieri and the others were turning back towards the gate.

"Commendante!" called a guard, running from down the street. "Commendante _(Commander)!_"

"What!" snapped Vieri, turning on the spot and giving the guard an irritated look. He glanced back as his father and the others mounted horses and rode off, away from San Gimignano.

"Mario Auditore has invaded the city!" cried the guard apprehensively. "He comes for you!"

Vieri laughed cynically. "Then let's not keep him waiting," he replied condescendingly before walking away to climb the battlements.

Ezio lowered his head to look down at Trinity for a moment who was stiff under his weight.

"Get off me!" she spat, shoving him away from with disgust. "The hell are you doing!"

He glared at her. "You almost blew our cover, idiota!" he growled back acidly but keeping his voice down. "What if they saw you? Vieri would have made a run for it."

"That man in the robes killed my family!" she hissed, hatred dripping in her voice. "I'm sure of it. And you just let him get away!"

Ezio blinked, shocked with proclamation. The slightest amount of guilt rose in his chest as both of them stood up.

Trinity pinched the bridge of her nose to calm herself….

_An __assassin __doesn__'__t __lose __her __temper,_she reminded herself. Ezio was doing the right thing…he didn't know…. And she had acted brashly.

As much as she wanted to, she couldn't blame Ezio for stopping her.

"Let's move," she said, her tone much more level.

They were just about to leap off onto the roof beneath them when a band of Mario's mercenaries were running down the street, meeting heavy opposition of Vieri's men where Vieri had just been.

"Where is that stronzo anyway?" said Trinity, scanning the streets.

Ezio looked as well when his eyes saw the battlements across the way. "There," he said, his vision turning a strange hue of blue. The weirdest sensation happened but he could differentiate easily who were his allies, who were emanating white, who were his enemies, who were emanating red…and his target, who was gold.

After a second, the blue hue vision vanished. Ezio shook his head, confused as to what just happened but he kept silent, not wanting to bring it up in the midst of battle.

"On the battlements?" Trinity squinted. "You can see from this far…?"

She turned to him, surprised. "Uh…" he replied lamely. "Yes…Vieri's there."

He pointed directly across from them.

"Alright, let's move," Trinity said.

Both of them leapt of the building the one across the street. Ezio led the way across the rooftops before dropping down to street level.

There was a scaffold next to the ramparts that they quickly ascended. They sprinted across the city walls and to the small tower that Vieri was shouting orders from. Now that they were closer, it was definitely Vieri and he had at least five men up at the top of the battlements with him.

"Go," whispered Trinity to Ezio to climb up first. "I'll cover you."

They scooted around towards the back so that they would be able to climb up with out being knocked off to the ground at least forty feet below. Trinity was only half a second behind him when Ezio pulled himself up, gripping a guard from behind to stab his hidden blade through his head.

Trinity was already upon another guard, thrusting her own blade into the back of the ribcage to pierce the heart. By this time, they had made enough noise for Vieri to turn around.

"Ezio!" he laughed darkly, withdrawing his sword. He glanced at Trinity, who stood a little behind Ezio with her daggers drawn. "I see you brought me a present."

Even after his humiliating confrontation she had with him previously, Vieri still had the nerve to mock her as if she were lesser than him.

She spat. "You will not survive this one, Vieri," Trinity said scathingly. "I will make sure you are dead this time."

Ezio was confused as to what she meant by "this time" but it wasn't much of his concern as all he wanted to do was cut Vieri's throat open.

Trinity engaged the three remaining guards, leaving Ezio to deal with Vieri. She knew Ezio's skill now was better that he had a high possibility of surviving this fight, and she was not worried.

And so Vieri and Ezio's dance began. Ezio waited for Vieri to lunge at him, which he sidestepped and made a counterattack. Vieri, however, quickly blocked the move and kicked Ezio back to regain ground.

Trinity had shoved a guard off the roof within a minute, leaving only two more to deal with. They were low ranked guards and she could see the fear in their eyes, knowing their fate already.

She parried a strike at her leg and quickly spun around on the spot, slicing at the man's torso and neck. The guard choked and dropped to the floor.

"Fear not, Ezio," chided Vieri with a snide expression. "I'll make sure your death comes quickly!"

Ezio blocked Vieri's attack and took a swing at his face, landing a good punch in the jaw to send Vieri stumbling back a few steps against the wall.

"For someone who is about to die," said Ezio, anger riddling his voice, "you sure talk big."

At this, Vieri glared at Ezio.

He glanced to his right, seeing Trinity's back facing him while she was attempting to finish off the final guard.

Vieri saw his chance and slashed at her as she was parrying a lunge from the guard. Vieri's sword tip grazed the back of her right shoulder, slicing open the fabric of her clothes and cutting her skin.

Trinity involuntarily gasped, having been caught off guard and dropped her weapon in her right hand. Vieri immediately kicked out one of her knees so that it sent her to the floor, vulnerable.

The guard took this moment to stab at her, but she quickly rolled to her left, seeing the point coming down on her. The guard's sword missed her by a couple inches as she rose to a stand, with only one of her daggers. She quickly abandoned it and unsheathed her sword though her strong arm was now limited in movement.

Ezio felt a wave a rage engulf him for Vieri making such a low move as attacking Trinity unaware like he had. With a surge of adrenaline, Ezio swung almost like a madman at Vieri, not letting up with strike after strike to Vieri's sword.

There was no fear in Vieri's eyes even though with all of Ezio's anger and power behind each stroke of his sword…and it incensed Ezio even more.

Ezio ran his sword straight through the junction of Vieri's neck and torso.

Trinity heard a clattering and she glanced over, seeing Vieri bleeding at the neck and on the floor. She returned her attention to the final guard, bringing her leg around when she shoved him away from her, her heel nailing the guard in the temple.

The force was enough to send him flying back and off the building.

She turned to face Ezio, who was holding Vieri by the collar. "What is the name of the man in the dark robes you were talking to?" Ezio demanded for Trinity's sake. "What are you and your allies planning? Is this what my father discovered?"

Trinity watched as Ezio shook Vieri's rapidly dying body.

"Is _this_why he was killed?" Ezio snapped.

Vieri let a dark smirk slip across his face, causing blood to drip from the corners of his lips. "I'm sorry," he choked out. "Were you hoping for a confession…?"

Even Trinity felt the fury that burst forth from Ezio as Vieri's breathing ceased. Even in his final breath, he mocked the Auditores.

"Pezzo di merda _(Piece__ of __shit)_!" Ezio shouted viciously, shaking Vieri's body in his rage. "Vorrei solo che avresti sofferto di più! _(I__ only __wish __you__'__d __suffer __more!)_"

"Ezio…" said Trinity behind him, but he didn't hear her.

"Hai avuto la fine che meritavi! _(You __met__ the __fate __you__ deserved)!__"_he yelled, his voice growing even louder. "Spero che bru-! _(I__ hope__ yo-!)_"

"Ezio!"

He threw Vieri's body down, whose eyes were still open, listless in the face of death…and remnants of his final smirk still at his lips.

Trinity gazed down at Ezio, her blue eyes visible because her hood had fallen back in the fight. For once, her eyes were not holding a look of general disdain for him…but one of sympathy.

"That's enough," she said, surprisingly gentle. "Show some respect."

Ezio's eyes went black as night at her words. _"__Respect?__" _he spat in disgust as he rose to a stand. "After all that's happened?"

He pointed to Vieri's body lying in a pool of blood. "Do you think that this stronzo _(fucker),__" _he snarled, kicking Vieri's head fiercely, "would have shown either of us such kindness?"

At this statement, Trinity's gaze hardened slightly. "You are _not_ Vieri," she said in a darker tone. "Do not become him."

She moved towards Vieri's body and knelt beside him. "Che la morte ti dia la pace che cercavi _(May__ death __provide __the __peace __you __sought),__" _she said quietly. "Requiescat in pace _(Rest __in __peace).__"_

She quickly brushed her gloved fingers over the eyes of Vieri to close them and quickly searched his body for anything that would give them answers. She found a small envelope hidden with Vieri's pockets and pulled it out but didn't read it.

Trinity found nothing else of importance so she stood up Ezio was staring at her with a mixture of disgust and revulsion at her "respect" for Vieri.

"I understand your hatred for him, Ezio," Trinity said as gently as she could. "Do not mistake showing consideration for those who have passed on as forgiving them or predilection for them. I despise this man too…but you are from a line of Assassins. We keep to a creed."

She handed him the envelope. "Here, you read this when you get the chance."

Ezio averted his eyes and practically swiped the envelope from her hand, feeling the slightest bit self-conscious for behaving like a child in front of her…especially because she had reprimanded him for it.

Trinity turned away and he saw the bleeding scratch on her upper shoulder blade.

"Stai bene…_(Are__ you__ okay)?__" _he asked quietly. Trinity paused just at the wall to start climbing down.

"I'm fine," she said, casting that signature smirk at him. "Let us return to Mario and tell him of our success, eh?"

She then leapt down off the tower and onto the wall below, making a groaning noise when she hit the floor below.

Ezio let a small noise of amusement and followed.


	13. Homecoming

**I do not own anything from the franchise, just my OC and minor plot changes.**

**Hi guys! Sorry it took so long to update, that wasn't my intention at all. I just got caught up with RPing as Ezio and some other life stuff got in the way, like school, so I just never got around to working on this. But now I'm back and hoping to update a little more quickly this time! Please enjoy! I don't have much else to say.**

**Thank you for all the reviews and subscribers thus far. xoxo  
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Chapter Twelve: Homecoming

Everyone who partook in the invasion of San Gimignano slept well for that day and it was decided that there would be a celebration of some sorts in the evening.

Ezio found Trinity walking up through the hallway just as he had come out of his bedroom, having slept for a solid ten hours. She was only in breeches, boots, and her thin, sleeveless shirt because her right shoulder was bandaged up from Vieri's blade. When she saw him, she stopped.

"Ah, you're awake," she said flatly. "Your uncle requests your presence."

He eyed her, unsure as to why she was speaking so formally to him but he brushed it off. "Where is he?" he asked.

She turned on her heel. "Out in front of the villa," Trinity replied. "Come."

He followed her, down the stairs and outside. There was a gathering of the mercenaries that took part in the fight last night, all with tankards of ale. Some were injured, wrapped in bandages…a few were even using some sort of crutches for support.

"And here they are!" cried Mario as the two teenagers approached the group that were around the dueling ring. "Our campioni _(champions), _Ezio and Trinity!"

"All hail Ezio and Trinity!" the throng cried, raising their mugs in a toast to them. Trinity wanted to roll her eyes; just for killing Vieri and they were being praised as if they were champions?

_Ludicrous, _she thought idly.

Ezio, however, enjoyed the glorification and attention. "I see you've wasted no time starting the celebration!" he laughed, walking up to them. Some of them clapped him on the back in a congratulatory fashion and one pressed a tankard of beer into Ezio's hands.

"And why not?" said Mario with a grin on his face. "You've done us a great service, nipote. With Vieri dead, la Toscana _(Tuscany) _will grow quiet once more. Do you know that means?"

Before Ezio could guess, someone in the crowd shouted, "Non più lavoro _(No more work!)"_

"Si passa tutto il giorno a bere _(We can drink all day)!" _another mercenary chimed in.

"E a puttane _(And with whores)!" _added a mercenary in the front.

Trinity, who was leaning on the fighting ring, immediately snorted in disgust. _"Uomini (men)…" _she sighed while there was an awkward silence that settled over the crowd because of how honest the mercenary was.

"What?" he said shrugging his shoulders. "It's true!"

At this, the men all laughed because it was indeed true. Trinity rolled her eyes, heavy irritation laced in her expression as she gazed at Mario expectantly.

Mario took the hint. "Come, Ezio. Walk with me," he said turning back towards the villa. Trinity pushed herself off the wall as Ezio followed Mario up the stairs.

Once they were out of earshot of the others, Ezio spoke up. "The Pazzi answer to another," he said seriously to Mario. "A Spaniard."

Mario cast a very dark look at the two young assassins. "His name is Rodrigo Borgia…one of the most powerful men in all of Europe…and leader of the Templar Order…"

Trinity blinked at the statement as they climbed the stairs. She gripped Mario's sleeve with an outraged expression, causing him to turn. "Wait, you _knew _this man's name the whole time!" she cried, not sure quite how to feel.

Mario and Ezio paused on the stairs to gaze at her with confusion.

"Yes…why? What's wrong?"

Trinity immediately facepalmed, feeling irritation rise in her throat. "Because that is the man that killed my family…" she growled between her fingers. "…I had wasted two years of my life…_searching _for him…or just his name and you already _knew. _Could you have not said anything!_"_

Mario stared for a moment longer and could not help but burst out laughing at her, in which she glared furiously at him.

"In my defense…you refused to tell me anything of your endeavors when you left Monterriggioni two years ago," he chuckled, putting a hand on her shoulder in a feeble way of consoling her. "How could I have known?"

She opened her mouth to argue but Ezio immediately put a hand over her face and pushed her away to keep her quiet.

"If Rodrigo Borgia is the leader, that makes him responsible for the murder of my father and brothers as well," he said darkly while Trinity looked as if she was going to explode from rage; his hand was still over her face and she was attempting to pry it off.

"Yes," Mario replied, resuming the climb up the stairs. "And he will kill you too, given the chance."

Ezio finally released her face and followed his uncle, not before receiving a very painful punch in the shoulder blade from Trinity.

"Then we have to stand against him if we ever wish to be free." Trinity had tried to appear calm as she spoke, though her inner rage was hard to rein in. She didn't blame Mario for not telling her…he had a point. She did not want anyone to know of her travels, so how could she expect him to have known that Rodrigo Borgia was the man who slaughtered her family?

They were at the front of the villa now when Ezio growled. "But not until every other Templar has fallen to my blade…. They deserve the fate I shall bring them," he spat. "And father's list will guide me."

Once in Mario's study, he finally turned to them with a very serious expression, one amplified by his battle-scarred face. "Where will you two go next…?"

At this, it appeared that Ezio was at a loss for words.

"Firenze," Trinity replied after a moment of silence. "I think Francesco de' Pazzi should share the fate of his son."

Pure disgust was rank in her tone at the thought of Vieri. How revolting he was, even with her little interaction with him.

"A sensible next step, Trinity," said Mario approvingly. "I have no doubt that he intends evil for the city."

It was decided they would leave for Firenze in the morning and so Mario began their preparations for their leave. He was not so keen on Trinity leaving so early with the wound she had received on her back, but she was adamant and stubborn, refusing to stay in Monterriggioni while Ezio goes to Firenze. She was not about to let him run off and possibly fail the assassination.

Meanwhile, Trinity had spoken with Claudia, who apparently was stuck doing busy book work for Mario now that she was staying for quite some time, about tracking the money Trinity was pouring into the city for repairs and improvements. The local architect was respectful, having called her "miss" more than a handful of times.

She dearly hoped that Ezio would be able to begin paying for such things, since she wasn't expected to help Monterrigioni prosper because it was under Auditore name, not Aldinucci.

Even still, she wanted to repay Mario for accepting her without question.

While she was tending to her money being put to good use, Mario finally decided to show Ezio the Sanctuary of assassins behind his office bookcase. Trinity met up with them down there once she was finished, having only seen the Sanctuary once before when she was a small child on a visit to Firenze.

"…these are the assassins who guarded the freedom of humanity when it was most threatened," she heard Mario telling his nephew as she rounded the corner.

The statues of the ancient assassins were impressive, as she had thought initially. Although, as a child, they seemed so much larger than this, so there was a small disappointment that sat in her chest upon her second sight. Ezio and Mario made their way towards the statue of Altair, locked behind a grate with his armor.

"That is the armor of Altair," said Mario, both staring at the black armor with a sort of reverence. "Little is known about Altair's life…but his armor is light and very strong. I'd give it to you…but I don't know how to retrieve it."

Trinity frowned from behind them, not so keen on the idea of handing Ezio something so valuable so early in his time as an assassin. In a way, she was happy they had no way of getting into the locked area; this wasn't out of jealousy, but more out of desire to preserve the name of Altair before Ezio more than likely mucks it up.

Mario continued to speak. "My great-grandfather told me that it would remain locked away until all its protectors were made whole."

It was clear that Ezio had no idea as to what Mario meant, and Mario did not look all that enlightened either.

"My father told me that there were crypts throughout Italia…hidden tombs filled with treasure where these six were moved centuries ago…" said Trinity after a moment of silence. She had remembered her father speaking of the Sanctuary's prized armor and that there were rumors of such crypts. "Perhaps…they have something to do with it."

She moved over to one of the statues, the Egyptian one. "See…this here looks like it's a type of key of some sort." Trinity pointed to the circular indention at the base.

"Yes, in my younger days," said Mario thoughtfully, "I had sought out those crypts…but with no success. I admit, I did not put entirely too much effort into looking for them though."

Ezio folded his arms. "Perhaps we will have better success."

Mario clapped him on the shoulder with a laugh. "I would hope so. It would be a wonderful sight to see you in Altair's armor."

Trinity snorted quietly. _If he gets to it sooner than later, it'll go to his head._

* * *

><p>Ezio and Trinity arrived in Firenze about midday the next day, having left in the early hours of that morning. Ezio had made it a point to have said his goodbyes to his mother and sister the night before, while Mario saw them off today.<p>

There was a sadness in Ezio's eyes that Trinity noticed, one she knew he would deny if she were to bring it up to him. However, it was easily recognizable in his tone as they had approached the city about a half hour prior, his regular irritation leaving and one of despondency replacing it.

Trinity automatically pulled her hood down, hoping that any guards that had been present from her last visit here, would not remember the two hooded assassins that escaped after the Auditore execution from two years ago. Anyone recognizing them would be highly unlikely but she wanted to be safe.

During one of their moments to rest their horses for a few minutes, Ezio had made it clear he wanted to visit Leonardo again, to which Trinity agreed to, since he could translate the Codex pages that they had taken from Monterriggioni.

She glanced at Ezio as they walked through the busy streets of Florence, unnoticed by anyone; she was pleased with this since she had no intentions of engaging in anymore fights. Her shoulder was only starting to heal from their skirmish with Vieri and his men two days prior and she was still quite sore, if not stiff.

"Brings back memories, doesn't it…?" she said finally, automatically casting her glance across the streets at where guards were placed. Firenze was a little relaxed as opposed to other cities but…seems like they kept guards on the roof since she was last here.

Ezio did not reply, but only cast a quick look. It was obvious he was deep in thought and Trinity let him be.

About twelve minutes later, they arrived at Leonardo's workshop, or at least they were hoping it still was.

Ezio stopped in the courtyard, however, and held out the few Codex pages he had been carrying for Trinity. "You go ahead. I have some business I need to take care of first."

Trinity raised a brow at him, not moving to take the Codex pages. "And what business is that?" Her tone was a little rough, mostly because it had been his idea to see Leonardo as soon as they arrived.

It was obvious Ezio was hiding something but he smirked at her as he pushed the Codex pages into her hands. "Tell Leonardo I will be by soon!" said Ezio with a small laugh, already walking away.

Trinity rolled her eyes; she already knew he wasn't going to answer her and the fact that he thought she was stupid was aggravating. She knew full well where he was going and it bothered her that he had to attend to his needs before attending to the Codex pages…or seeing his old friend.

She opened her mouth to call out a snide remark to him, but instead, stopped herself. With a heavy and slightly irritated sigh, she turned back to the workshop door and knocked, holding the Codex pages close for safekeeping.

After a moment, the door opened and Trinity found herself gazing upon the friendly face of Leonardo Da Vinci.

"Signorina Trinity!" he cried, clapping his hands on her shoulders and kissing her cheeks without hesitation. She laughed lightly and he led her inside. "It's good to see you're still alive! And Ezio? Is he with you still? How is he?"

Trinity chuckled again, letting her gaze set upon the workshop which was filled with finished works of art and countless other things she couldn't fathom. "Grazie, and Ezio is here in Firenze, though he ran off to attend to some business. Probably to look at his old home, to see what had become of it. He should be back shortly." She smiled broadly at him, noticing how much brighter Leonardo's face lit up to hear Ezio was in Firenze. After a moment, she gestured around the room. "Just look at this place! The past two years have been very kind to you!"

"They have, they have!" Leonardo was enthusiastic but after a moment his face turned concerned. "But…you…? You are not the same are you?"

Trinity could not help but smile gently at this, turning her gaze to the wall behind him. "…all things change in time…"

Her reply had been soft but she quickly refocused herself. "But Ezio and I were here in hopes that you could help us with something."

"Anything for you, amico mio _(my friend)."_

Trinity grinned and held up the Codex pages that they needed translated. Leonardo's face was as bright as the sun when he saw them and he eagerly took them from her grasp.

"Aha! You found more! How exciting!" he exclaimed, moving over to his work table quickly.

He was certainly a small child in an adult's body, at least to some extent. Leonardo pulled out one of the first and hovered over it momentarily, having gone silent. Trinity moved to join him, looking over his shoulder though she knew it would take her months to figure these out…not a matter of hours.

"Hmm. This one is tricky." He was thoughtful, scratching his goatee absently as he stared at the page. Trinity had been admiring his paintings for the last ten minutes or so before he spoke. "Clever in its use of ancient languages...Oh… Oh!"

"What?"

Leonardo glanced at her very briefly. "It seems to be a manual of sorts for different assassination techniques," he said, deep in his translating. Trinity smiled.

"Oh good, Ezio might learn something useful," she said offhandedly as she went back to his desk. She knew, however, she could benefit from looking at it as well.

"Wait! What's that?" Leonardo put a hand up to stop her from reaching over to take the page, further giving her an image of an over excited child stuck in a man's body. "It's not so much a design this time…. Just a series of sketches… Hmmmm. What to make of all this?"

She was not following anymore, which she already knew would happen once he was too far into his work. "Aho! But of course! And why not? What an inspired idea!"

Trinity nodded and gave a weak smile, thoroughly confused since his sentences were revealing nothing, as he took her hand in his to look at her hidden blade and bracer.

"Well, if it's alright, would you make it for me…while I go and fetch Ezio?" She hoped he was talking about some type of invention.

Leonardo shook her hand excitedly. "Of course, of course! While you're away, I'll have my assistant set up some dummies for you and Ezio to practice on with the techniques in this manual fragment when you return with him."

Trinity nodded approvingly, about to agree but Leonardo turned around and shouted, "Hey! Vincenzo!" and cutting her off.

She slipped away when the painter set about explaining what he wanted done in the courtyard just outside his workshop, but not before Leonardo stopped her momentarily to measure her left arm.

Once safely outside, Trinity immediately took to the roofs, unconcerned with the stares of the civilians below or even some comments they made about her climbing.

If she was right about Ezio's whereabouts, he may be harder to find than she would have hoped for.

* * *

><p>The moment he was out of sight from Trinity, Ezio broke out into a light jog down the streets of Firenze, having no intentions of stopping until he reached his destination.<p>

Within five minutes, he was gazing upon the window he use to gaze at almost nightly two years ago. It was cast open, which made for perfect entry way. He could hear her voice…dismissing a maid or the like before it went silent. Ezio scaled the wall covered in vines and hoisted himself up into her window, balancing at the balls of his feet as he gazed at his old love.

She hadn't changed at all…maybe only slightly, more radiant now that she was more of a woman and less of a child.

It took her about a half a minute before she gasped from fright at him sitting in her window with a smirk at his lips.

"E-Ezio!" Cristina had been putting up her hair idly before she felt like she was being watched. She had not expected to see him…not after so long…. "What are you doing here?"

There was a strange sort of fear in her voice as she stood up, which threw Ezio off momentarily. Was she not happy to see him?

"I only just came back to Firenze," he replied smoothly, hoping to use his usual charm to warm up to his old love. He approached her slowly before he put a hand to her cheek. Again…that sadness in her eyes was unmistakable. "Look at you…as beautiful as ever."

At this, Cristina's eyes began to brim with tears and she made a noise of exasperation. "But…Ezio I-" She couldn't find the right words, nor meet his gaze so she turned away. "I just…it's been two years!"

It was all she could say…even though she wanted to say more.

Ezio took her hand in his, using his other to turn her face so that he could look into her eyes again. "And I thought of nothing else."

He did not expect her to brush him off and walk away from him, cheeks tear-stained now. "What is it?" He reached out to touch her shoulder and she cast him a watery glance.

"I-I'm engaged to married!"

There was a sting to his heart at these words but he let his face remain relatively impassive at the news. It was clear, she was not pleased with it herself as she attempted to dry her cheeks. "My father kept asking me to choose…he wouldn't stop until I picked someone. And I…I thought I never was going to see you again…so I…just…"

She faded off, fighting back more tears and struggling to hold his gaze. However, before Ezio had a chance to reply, there was a shriek of a woman, calling out to Cristina.

"Cristina! Manfredo! Manfredo is going to be killed!" shouted the woman, accompanied by a man, in the street below just as Ezio and Cristina leaned out the window.

"What!"

Cristina sounded as though she was surprised and slightly distraught.

"The man he lost money to," said the man with her urgently. He pointed off down the street. "They dragged him off to the end new bridge!"

Ezio was confused, as well as angry because these two had just ruined his reunion with Cristina. "Who the hell is Manfredo?" he demanded, looking at Cristina with dark eyes.

She put a hand to her face in distress. "Fidanzato mia _(my fiancé)!"_

Without thinking Ezio leapt from the window, sprinting across the rooftops to the new bridge the man had been speaking of. He knew this was important, maybe not to Cristina but it was important for her life…for her future. He would do anything to protect that, especially…

…because he knew that Cristina deserved better than what he was going to provide her. He wouldn't be able to be with her at all times…he was now leading the life of an assassin, and he would not subject her to have to deal with the consequences of his actions.

There were a total of five men near the new bridge as Ezio ground to a stop at the edge of the roof. One obviously was unarmed; that must have been Manfredo, and the others didn't quite look like guards, but he wasn't entirely sure if they were mercenaries either.

Didn't matter; Ezio had to safe Cristina's fiancé from his own stupidity.

* * *

><p>Trinity was losing her patience fast. Firenze was never a city she memorized, having always thought she would rarely visit the place, though now she regretted it.<p>

She had looked for Ezio relentlessly; true it had only been a max of fifteen minutes, but when sprinting hard and avoiding guards across rooftops, with some shooting volleys of arrows in her direction, one gets a little tired, or at least irritated.

With a huff, she turned once more, having been standing on a higher point of the city to see if there was anything that would give his presence away. He was in assassin's robes, so spotting him would be easy for her.

There was a commotion a few streets down, by the water way and what looked like a construction of a new bridge. Townspeople were gathering…and if…

That was him. There was a figure in white and by the looks of it, just engaged into combat.

"_Idiota!" _she hissed under her breath, leaping across the roof to one across the street and below. She tore into the direction of fight, aggravation nearly exploding. Her shoulder stung with the sudden harsh moment again; she wondered if she reopened the wound or not but she pressed on.

Trinity slid to a stop, gazing upon the fight from a high vantage point. Four guards against Ezio and an unarmed…noble maybe? She couldn't be sure. His clothes weren't entirely fancy or embellished enough to be of too high of rank.

She was not about to just leap into a fight uninvited, or with her shoulder still torn up from her previous skirmish. Instead, she gripped one of her throwing knives, waiting for an opportunity to strike. These guards had no armor, in fact they just looked like body guards of another noblemen, nothing special about them.

Trinity leapt down to a lower part of the building, bathing her into shadow as she waited for a moment for an opening.

Ezio cut down two guards easily enough and was dealing with the third. Trinity took this moment to throw her knife at the final guard that was advancing on the unarmed noblemen. The force behind the throw, which lodged the knife into the back of the guard, caused him to fall off the bridge and into the water.

With a final stab, Ezio ran the last guard through, turning to try to tend to the fourth but stopped short when he saw the nobleman standing there alone. Trinity smirked slightly, getting ready to move towards them and scold Ezio for his stupidity.

"Grazie messare!" said the man, putting his hands together gratefully as he approached Ezio. "You don't know how close-"

Ezio immediately backhanded the noble and gripped him by the collar, leading him towards the edge of the unfinished bridge, as if to push him into the water.

"Hey! Aspetta _(Wait), _what are you doing! I-I can't swim!"

Trinity furrowed her brow in utter confusion, having stopped from moving from her hiding spot. _Why did he save him only to…?_

She let her question trail when Ezio half snarled at the noble. "Do you love her?"

"What?" Even in this situation, it was clear the unnamed man was confused by the question.

"Do you _love _her?" Ezio repeated, tone harsher. "Cristina, you idiota! The woman you're about to marry!"

Trinity rolled her eyes, realizing where this was going. With a heavy sigh and an irritated expression, she leaned against the wall and continued to watch.

"Y-yes I do!" cried the man, glancing down at the water beneath him. "I swear I do! Kill me here and I will _die _still loving her."

Trinity could not help but snort at how idiotic that sounded and she crossed her arms, now slightly amused.

"You are _never _going to gamble again." His voice was stern and ominous as he brought the man about a foot away from his face.

"N-never, messare!"

Ezio brought him even closer, tone grower darker. "You will be a good husband to her," he said firmly, "or I will hunt you down…and kill you myself."

And with that, he shoved the man against a wall lining the bridge before turning on his heel to leave. Trinity snorted again, backing into the shadows further and Ezio passed by her.

After a moment, she followed him from the roofs, making sure to avoid guards…or just kill them, whichever she felt was more necessary, while Ezio moved through the crowds quickly, obviously intent on getting somewhere. Trinity made sure to stay hidden thought it was not hard when she was above him and his attention was elsewhere.

Trinity glanced further down, and saw a young woman quickly coming in the opposite direction towards them. It was that woman from before, she realized, the girl Ezio left behind. She racked her brain for a moment...Cristina was her name…wasn't it?

An involuntary groan escaped her lips just before Ezio caught Cristina by the arm and almost roughly pushed her against the wall. Trinity made a look of utter disgust, watching Ezio kiss Cristina fiercely, urgently with a hand against the wall and the other at her waist.

The young assassin on the roof practically glared at the pair from behind, impatient for them to discontinue so that she could bring Ezio back to Leonardo. Her irritation with him never seemed to dissipate; it was always there, only varying in levels of aggravation.

_Any day now, _she spat mentally, glancing up to see if guards were close, which they were not.

Finally, Ezio pulled away, taking a step back from Cristina. She was gazing at Ezio with a sort of adoring look, one that caused Trinity to gag on. The pair was silent for a moment, unaware of their surroundings around them.

"He's fine and he'll make a good husband." At first his tone was almost nonchalant, and Cristina gave him a look of disbelief before his voice went much darker again. "I made sure of it."

Ezio, without so much as another glance at her, turned and walked away. Trinity immediately put a hand to her forehead, mentally cursing his indiscretion.

"Wh-what?"

He left Cristina standing there with the most confused expression before he turned the corner and moving into the crowd.

Again, Trinity followed him for a little ways, giving him time to mull over what he had just done. When a space cleared, she leapt down from a low beam, right beside Ezio, who jumped just slightly at her sudden appearance.

"Siete veramente stupidi _(You really are stupid)_…" Trinity sighed as she rose to a stand. Ezio cast a dark glare at her.

"Why were you following me!" he snapped angrily.

Trinity tilted her head slightly and frowned at him. "Because you can't even be in Firenze for an hour until you get into a fight with some guards…" she said impatiently. "And for what..? To let a girl you love marry someone she clearly doesn't want?"

Ezio averted his eyes away momentarily, realizing Trinity had seen a lot more than he had hoped. "…that is my decision."

He turned away to start walking again; Trinity however looked to her right for a moment.

Cristina had just stopped some thirty feet away, catching sight of Trinity, with Ezio a few feet ahead of her. There was a moment where they held gazes before the assassin shook her head just slightly, silently telling Cristina not to follow.

Trinity held the gaze for one more half a second longer before she turned away to catch up with Ezio.

The two of them were silent once more, snaking through the civilians back to Leonardo's workshop.

"You did the right thing…" said Trinity, though it sounded like she didn't actually want to agree with something like that. "Although you lack tact-"

Ezio shoved her to the side, cutting her off, without so much as a glance at her. "Stai zitto _(Shut up)."_

Trinity huffed as she straightened up, not before punching him hard in the arm and they continued their way back to Leonardo.


End file.
